Straw prices relax a bit

The price for uncut wheat straw in week 6 will be €135 to €140 per tonne free on farm, a level that is seen by the trade as a temporary high. Higher prices are not excluded, but are currently not an issue. Barley straw writes down the same amount and cut product goes away at a plus of €10.

Despite the fact that the prices for straw have increased by more than 20% since August, the supply remains far from ample. This is due on the one hand to quality problems as a result of setbacks during the harvest, but on the other hand to the attitude of arable farmers. The French farmers still give sparsely straw along. On the other hand, there is stable demand from both dairy farmers and other sectors.

Scarcity in various products
Rapeseed straw continues to be scarce. The batches that are still there are going away at solid prices. This includes prices around €175 per tonne. For both Rood- and Rietzwenk the price is €150 per tonne free of charge at the farm. The products are slightly less scarce than rapeseed straw, but that's about it.

It is much quieter in English Raai (€135 per tonne franco farm). A product that is not really appreciated by dairy farmers. Pasture hay is mainly good for horse farmers and sells for €170 per ton. The dairy farmers themselves also have more than enough grass silage, which means that there is minimal trade. When the product is dry enough, it finds its way to horse keepers.

Sellers hold on
Pressure is on the price of silage maize. It remains calm in this feed segment; something that translates into prices with a wide spread. The average price is €56,25 per tonne free from farm. It means that the price is slightly below last year's level. Then it was the question from Belgium that kept the price going, now it's because sellers don't want to part with the product at lower prices. There is more demand for feed potatoes, but that market also looks like a wave. The price is between €25 and €27,50 per tonne free from farm.

In the by-products, it helped that the price of spent grains dropped to €2,25 to €2,35 per percent dry matter. The decrease is a result of more supply due to higher beer production in combination with lower demand. There is also a larger supply of wheat yeast concentrate, which resulted in a reduction of €0,10 per percent dry matter. This results in an advantage of approximately €30 per tonne. The potato press fibers remain stable.

The reductions in by-products can be traced back, among other things, to the developments in wheat. The more expensive euro also helps to keep the price of feed raw materials under control. An increase was seen in the price of soya and rapeseed meal. Something that can encourage shifts in the menu.The price of silage maize is slightly below the level of 2017.