Winter wheat yields will be highly variable across the prairies.

Hot and dry conditions on the prairies in July have impacted yields, but what about protein levels. 

 

Guy Ash is a weather and crop surveillance analyst with the Canadian Wheat Board. 

 

He says it's early to be making definitive predictions, but in general hot weather does increase protein. 

 

Ash expects levels will return to historical levels after being well below in 2004 and 2005. 

 

On average, 60% of the red spring wheat crop grades number one or two, and contains 13.6% protein. 

 

In 2004 and 2005 40 percent or less of the crop was number one or two, and protein levels hovered close to 13 percent.