Pea And Lentil Expect Difficult Year Due To Drought

Thanks to the extreme heat and drought we’ve seen across the Northwest, pulse growers are preparing for a disappointing year. Tim McGreevy, Chief Executive Officer at the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council, says this year has been the most difficult growing season he’s seen in a long time.

“You know, I have a small farm myself, just north of Pullman, and I’m telling you, we haven’t seen much appreciable rain since we planted. And, the temperatures have just been absolutely, literally, the hottest on record in terms of temperatures during the growing season.”

McGreevy said the only year to which he can compare 2021 was a hot, dry one over four decades ago.

“In 1977 the pea yields averaged, and this was just Washington and Idaho because that’s where most of the pulses were grown at that time, it averaged 613 pounds per acre. And the normal yield is around 2,000 pounds per acre here in the Northwest.”

And this year, McGreevy says overall losses are expected to be extreme, with yield losses anywhere between 50%-70%.

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