Thanks to the hot and dry weather, Saskatchewan crops progressed over the last week.

According to the latest crop report from the Ministry of Agriculture, harvest progress sits at 16 per cent, up from five per cent last week and on par with the five-year average.

An additional 12 per cent of the crop is also now swathed or ready to straight cut.

Harvest progress is most advanced in the southwest region where farmers now have 45 per cent of their crop in the bin, followed by producers in the west-central, who have 19 per cent of their crop harvested. Farmers in the southeast have six per cent of crops in their fields, the east-central has completed four per cent, and the northern regions have one per cent of their crop harvested.

Sixty-three per cent of the winter wheat, 36 per cent of the fall rye, 52 per cent of lentils, 43 per cent of field peas, 30 per cent of durum, six per cent of spring wheat and three per cent of canola has been combined.

Crop damage wasn’t as bad as in previous weeks, but the majority of damage this week was due to wind, heavy rainfall and hail. Grasshoppers continue to cause large amounts of crop loss, with producers already worried about their population next year and how they will manage to control them.

The Ministry is also reminding with harvest underway; producers should exercise caution and remain safe. Give equipment time and space when travelling down or crossing highways or other roads.

Producers are reminded to have firefighting equipment nearby, especially in extremely dry regions.