It is dry and with the night frost it is certainly drivable in the field in the morning. With the manure season opened this week, the field work is more attractive than the feed trade. That is perhaps not entirely justified. Especially in the by-products there are quite a few shifts and the attentive buyer can save money.
The supply of campaign products such as press pulp and potato press fibre is drying up somewhat. On the other hand, potato steam peels from the French fry processing industry are becoming more available. Suppliers also have no complaints about the supply of residual flows from grain processing. On average, the prices for by-products are under some pressure. According to insiders, it can certainly do no harm to take a good look at the ration.
The supply of brewers' grains is also wider than it has been in recent weeks. In the run-up to carnival, builders have stepped it up a notch, according to some insiders. The DCA Indicative Price has dropped this week by €0,10 to €3,65 per percent dry matter.
Not all residual products are readily available. Feed potatoes are not in abundance, to put it mildly. You have to rely on small batches from sorters or seed potato growers, according to traders. The same applies to feed carrots, for example. The DCA Indicative Price for feed potatoes remains stable at €50 per tonne.
The run in grass seed hay is out
In hay and straw, the regular work continues, but no more than that. Straw is available, but because there are no excessively large stocks, arable farmers dare to ask good money. Regular customers who need a load of straw every now and then remain on the market, but buyers who thought they were stocking up again for the coming harvest are disappointed. The DCA Indicative Price for both wheat and barley straw remains unchanged at €185 per tonne. The price of grass seed hay is under some pressure. "There was a lot of no-selling this season and now you notice that customers are no longer asking for it", according to a trader. There is now a slightly higher supply of grass seed hay from arable farmers who want to empty the barn just before spring. The DCA Indicative Price for grass seed hay takes a step back this week to €165 per tonne. There is not much trade, by the way. If you compare it to hammered straw, grass seed hay is a more affordable alternative. Meadow hay remains stable at €190 per tonne.
In silage grass and maize, trade is tame. In some years, livestock farmers see that they are short of feed around this time and they go to the market to replenish their stock until the start of the grazing season. The maize harvest may not have been a real top crop last autumn, but grass was harvested sufficiently last season. The forage trade therefore has to rely mainly on the more intensive companies that always buy extra maize and grass. Prices remain unchanged this week. The DCA Indicative Price for maize is €90 per tonne and for good silage grass €80 per tonne.