The roughage market was not spectacular for a long time, but that has now changed. This is because there is more demand from dairy farmers. At the same time, there is also new supply now that the harvest has started.
The increasing demand is due to the drought. Although rain fell in several places last week, supplies at dairy farmers are drying up. Several are already missing a grass cut. Another factor is that it is dry in France, East Germany and southern Spain, for example, which means there is a smaller supply of straw, among other things.
New supply of straw
The price for barley and wheat straw has dropped slightly now that supply is picking up. The price is approximately €15 to €25 lower than the price for old harvest and amounts to €110 per ton, free of charge. Sales of the new straw are going well. Some traders expect the straw price to rise slightly, also due to the smaller supply from abroad.
In addition to straw, red fescue, tall fescue and meadow meadow are also coming onto the market from Denmark, among others. This price starts around €130 per tonne, free of charge. This price is also paid for perennial ryegrass, which has fallen somewhat this week.
More trade in meadow hay
The trade in meadow hay is also getting better. Especially the finer meadow hay is selling well. The price drops slightly to €155 per tonne, due to an increasing supply. It is expected that the price will rise again in the coming weeks. This is because the meadow hay is now delivered from the field, and if arable farmers first have to store it in the barn, they then send it at a slightly higher price.
High-quality silage maize is scarce, but there is plenty of product with little starch. Demand increases at a constant price of approximately €67 per tonne. The price for spent grain has been falling for some time, but this has now changed. Prices have increased by €0,20 to €2,20 percent dry matter.