Many Alberta farmers were rocked by wild weather this summer, with overall claim activity 25 per cent above average, according to the Canadian Crop Hail Association.
The association’s latest report stated that although insurance companies saw more normal claim volumes from Alberta in August, storms struck southern Alberta early in the season. Central Alberta was hit hard from mid- to late July.
Hail claims were a little below the five-year average in Saskatchewan this summer, but there was more activity in the last week of August.
Read Also
Senft to step down as CEO of Seeds Canada
Barry Senft, the founding CEO of the five-year-old Seeds Canada organization is stepping down as of January 2026.
A storm on Aug. 28 swept from the southwest to the northeast corner of the province, netting the most claims. But overall damage seems to have been light to moderate, the association reports.
Saskatchewan farmers around Assiniboia, Mossbank, Eston, Foam Lake and Invermay saw significant storms Aug. 23 and Aug. 24. Hail also hit Luseland, Macklin, Nipawin, Carrot River, Moose Range, Codette and Gainsborough on Aug. 30.
Though Manitoba hail claim numbers were relatively light in July, storms on Aug. 18 and Aug. 31 bumped numbers to the five-year average. The Aug. 18 storm followed a line from Belmont and Baldur to Pilot Mound and La Riviere.
An Aug. 31 cell stormed through southern Manitoba. Hail mainly damaged swathed canola in fields from Pierson to Dufrost. Damage ranged from 20 per cent to 100 per cent.
As farmers continue harvesting, the Canadian Crop Hail Association asks them to contact their insurance providers about requirements for check strips or swaths.
Although farmers will be anxious to harvest, the association states that appropriate evidence must be left in affected fields to obtain accurate adjustments.
— Lisa Guenther is a field editor for Grainews at Livelong, Sask.
