In comparison, Western Canadian wheat production totalled 23.8 Mt in 1995-96. Historically, about two-thirds of the area seeded to barley in Western Canada has been seeded to malting varieties as opposed to feed varieties, primarily because of a significant price premium in most years. In 1995-96, area seeded to malting barley varieties increased to about 75 per cent. Although about 15 per cent of total barley production is normally selected for malt, selection in 1995-96 is estimated at 20 per cent, due to increased overall demand and a drought in Australia. Alberta produces roughly half of Western Canada's barley production.
Barley accounts for about one-quarter of total area seeded to grains and oilseeds in Alberta.
In 1995-96, Alberta produced 6.4 Mt of barley. The bulk of production is in the central and south-central regions. Area seeded to barley, as a proportion of total area, averages about 13 per cent and varies from about 20 per cent in the black soil zones to 5 per cent in the brown soil zones. In 1995-96, Saskatchewan produced 4.3 Mt of barley, or about 36 per cent of total barley production in Western Canada. In Manitoba , the bulk of barley production occurs in the southern regions, excluding the far eastern and south-western regions.