Futurists and pundits often make compelling cases for how the agricultural world will unfold. Here are a half dozen instances where predictions have missed the mark or at least missed the expected time frame.

1. Remember a few years ago when plant-based meat substitutes were all the rage? Big investment dollars were betting on a meteoric expansion in fake meat consumption. Huge sums have been lost on that bet.

Maybe it was the taste profile or the cost or the long list of hard-to-pronounce ingredients. Whatever the reasons, the initial infatuation quickly faded. Plant-based meat isn’t a dead concept, but it is no longer seen as an immediate threat to beef, pork and poultry.

2. About a decade ago, some of the big seed companies were predicting huge acreages of soybeans and grain corn across Western Canada. Genetic advances were about to make those crops profitable options over a wide geography.

Many producers tried soybeans, but they’ve only become an important cropping option in Manitoba, with a limited acreage in the southeast corner of Saskatchewan. Almost all the corn grown for grain is also confined to Manitoba.

Maybe corn and soybeans will eventually expand further, but it certainly doesn’t seem imminent.

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