The first barley straw arrives on the roughage market

For barley straw we are switching to the price of the new harvest. It is now coming onto the market. That's a good thing, because straw from the old harvest is running out, says an insider. In France and the Netherlands, the necessary winter barley was threshed last week and the weather cooperated to get the straw in properly. The DCA Indicative Price for barley straw from the new harvest starts at €125 per tonne.

Wheat straw usually comes later than barley straw. For this we are still dependent on the last straw from the 2023 harvest that is in the shed. Continuing, it will take another three to four weeks before new wheat straw arrives. And there isn't much of the old one left. The Dutch stock is said to be almost gone. The first French straw could already be delivered, or at least that won't take long. The DCA Indicative Price remains at €160 per tonne.

Market sentiment varies somewhat about meadow hay. One person indicates that the supply is good, while other forage traders complain that it is difficult to find good hay. In any case, last week was a week in which the weather cooperated for making hay. However, the dry period was on the short side. This week the rain is back again and you won't get the chance to make hay. The DCA Indicative Price is based on hay from the new harvest and is therefore lower compared to last week when hay from the barn was the starting point. The DCA Indicative Price is €180 per tonne.

Ask for spent grain due to wetness
Due to the persistent wet weather, livestock farmers have hardly been able to graze in recent months. The cows have to eat and therefore more supplementary feeding is given than in other years. Grazing is not getting off to a bad start and some livestock farmers are only now starting to let their cows outside. All in all, spent grain remains popular as a roughage product and the market is picking up again. Waiting times are increasing and the supply is shrinking. Demand is 'super good' according to some suppliers. The DCA Indicative Price rises to €3,20 per percent dry matter.

The nice weather last week gave an extra boost to sowing silage maize. That is actually too late, but in such an extreme year the boundaries are being pushed. It is now July and there is little point in sowing now. Cutting maize is available, but we may have to drive a little further, for example to Germany. Differences in supply per region are large and transport costs partly explain the large differences in prices charged by traders. The DCA Indicative Price takes a small step back to €95 per tonne.

The harvest of grass seed has yet to really begin. The first corners have been threshed, but that was usually not out of luxury. The weather should also change for grass seed. The old crop of grass seed hay was almost gone. It is only the real enthusiasts who now feed grass seed hay according to an informant. It is mainly a matter of waiting for the new harvest. The DCA Indicative Price remains unchanged at €185 per tonne for grass seed hay, but with the comment that there is very little trade.

As far as silage grass is concerned, there is currently not much, but sufficient supply. The second cut was mowed in many places last week, but it still needs to sit for a while before it can be fed. The DCA Indicative Price for silage that can be fed directly remains stable at €85 per tonne. The price for fresh grass is a few tens of euros less.

There are still hardly any feed potatoes. Processors can use almost all the potatoes and therefore hardly anything disappears into the feed. The DCA Indicative Price remains the same at €60 per tonne, if they are available at all.