In the grand scheme of things, the very valid question arises: is wheat a special crop? Considering the current trend, it may very well be a "special crop". The changes in the prairie landscape in recent years have seen the emergence of a good deal of other crop species and varieties come onto the scene, in the interest of a "good rotation". The current idea of a good rotation sees the alternate growing of broad leaf crops and annual grasses (which we call cereals.) Wheat is, after all a cereal, or in the eyes of a botanist somewhere else in the world, an annual grass.
While we are in that frame of mind and topic, wouldn't it be great if there was perennial wheat? All you as a farmer would have to do then is go out and harvest it, with no inputs. Surely, some great mind has thought of the concept, perhaps even tried to achieve it. Most to my mind and knowledge, have failed. Maybe it equates to the oceans as a source of perennial fish, and you as a fisher (person) could just go out of port each day and catch what you want or thought you needed. No one to monitor how much you caught, or even cared, ever entered the scene. (I think we are still learning about fish and fishing the oceans of the world)
Maybe we have achieved success and didn't even know it. Take the crop perennial rye grass, for instance; it already exists. Maybe we haven't recognized it as a valid food source for people, but given the choice of starvation or eating it, I think I know the obvious choice.
Now all we have to do is steer that budding young scientist in the right direction, and he will achieve stardom in the world of genetic manipulation. Or is that known as genetic modification? Heavens, we couldn't possibly allow that to happen in the world in this day and age. Who, in our world, could stand up in front of a crowd and explain the difference between a package of "hybrid" garden seed and a genetically modified garden seed? For that matter, who could take either type of produce and distinguish one from the other? I submit the number would be dang small. The consumer of the oil coming out of a vegetable oil crushing facility is in the very same boat.
The world regularly eats varying amounts of one of the three basic cereals we produce around the globe; whether they prefer wheat, corn or rice, depends on the environment, what they were taught to eat, or more likely, what was available. Usually a price is a major determining factor in the decision making process, and who knows just who is controlling those prices. A lot of the empathetically given food aid in the world doesn't get to where it was intended by the giver, without some complications. Somebody has their hand out for freight, others for handling at the dockside, or still others, for distribution to those who need it. One of the great disappointments in this process is the intervening person or groups that feel they want that food to pass through their hands, so they can control who gets it, less of course, what they remove for their own gains. The politics of food can be an ugly thing.
Wheat was once declared to be " the easiest food in the world to grow". The key word here is "grow". According to even more recent experts all you had to do was "put a few seeds in the ground, give it a bit of water, and bingo, you will produce a food". Simply put: no problem! Today, there may still be people who can get success with that simple formula, but there are a lot of prairie Canadian farmers who believe otherwise. They now have learned that there are things like diseases that can reduce effective production to zero. You may produce some food, but not likely very much of value.
The producers of today have learned a lot from rotations. They have learned that they must conscientiously be on the alert for carryover of disease on the land and in the residue from previous crops. They have also learned that they must methodically record their crop care applications so as not to introduce unwanted crop deterrents in subsequent years. Very quickly, wheat farmers have had to learn about things such as root rot or Fusarium head blight, and what to do to negate their effect or, at least, control them, in order to produce a successful crop in a cost efficient manner. In short, wheat has become a crop as demanding to grow as one of those "special" new crops.
So, is wheat a "special "crop? The answer has got to be a resounding "yes", from the standpoint that it takes a lot more knowledge, management and a little luck to grow wheat successfully compared to when we grew it in the "good old days".
Commodity prices being where they are, a farmer must also garner a little bit of luck to get even a small margin of profit in today's world. A Saskatchewan farmer today must carry a very sharp pencil to realize a profit, while being an astute marketer and forecaster. That same farmer or farming team must also be willing to institute change in the farming operation, in order to adapt to shifting markets and stand a chance of survival in the future.
Value added production is an option to only a few who are willing to take an even further gamble into an often integrated world, using their fragile farm as a base of resource. A sharp business mind must also be developed to successfully venture into an unknown world and perceived situation where there are people who are just waiting for your new product, and will make you rich if only they can buy it. There are many pitfalls along the way that lure the unsuspecting by illusions of reward at the end of the streets cobbled with gold.
Back home, the knowledgeable wheat farmer, who has gone to a local field day and witnessed a wreck about to happen to the local wheat crop with the onset of an infestation of Fusarium, goes home and sleeps well because he knows that in order to produce a successful crop he has had to apply a crop care product at the right time and in the right amounts to put more of the success odds on his or her side.
Is wheat an easy crop, or for that matter, a simple crop to grow? I submit it takes every bit of knowledge that a farmer can gain to achieve success, along with a little bit of luck thrown in.
Is wheat an endangered species? I rather think not, especially when one thinks of the near critical situation in the world of ever more starvation-prone countries. But, if we keep diversifying into "other" special crops and away from wheat, who knows what may happen not too far into the future.
I know of farmers who grew only wheat and summerfallowed the remainder of their land not so long ago, and now grow only enough wheat to properly fill out their rotation that includes a lot of non-cereals. They have also quit the practice of summerfallow for a number of reasons and even switched over to a direct seeding system. But, that's a whole other story….
In the meantime, there is still a lot of corn to fill the gap, and we haven't even looked close at rice.
Perennial wheat might still be interesting.