Significant rain is yet to fall in most parts of the Netherlands. A little moisture would be desirable to get the grass going again. However, the drought is certainly not causing panic in the forage trade. And although it is still early, the first barley straw from the new harvest is coming onto the market.
The grain harvest has now started with the winter barley. In the Netherlands, winter barley is of course only a small crop, but from France there is already some straw that is coming onto the market. The reports on how much straw is under the winter barley vary somewhat. One trader reports that 'there is a lot of straw under it' while another 'doesn't think it is all that bad'. As for the price of the barley straw, it is still a bit of a trial and error process. Some traders have already agreed that they can clear the straw, but have not yet set a price with the arable farmer or have agreed on a price per hectare.
Only a few have already received a price for new barley straw delivered to the farmer. Based on that, the DCA Indication for barley straw comes to €140 per tonne with a range of €135 to €145 per tonne. It is quite conceivable that this price will continue to fall in the coming weeks, but according to traders, that will depend on whether it is better or worse with the tonnes of straw that are underneath.
The wheat straw market is reasonably balanced. There is not much demand anymore because buyers are waiting for the new harvest. That is a good thing according to a trader because 'the back of the barn is now very much in view'. The DCA Indicative Price for wheat straw remains stable at €185 per tonne.
Old and new
In the case of meadow hay, old and new harvests are somewhat intertwined. Last week, good meadow hay was harvested on a larger scale under good conditions. Customers who buy hay in stock have taken advantage of that opportunity. However, horse owners or riding schools who want to feed immediately are still dependent on hay from 2024. That makes the price range very wide, from around €160 to €190 per tonne. For good meadow hay from the new harvest, the DCA Indicative Price is €175 per tonne. In grass seed hay, trade has yet to get going. In that respect, the weather is not very good for the grass seed harvest. According to insiders, the first grass seed has already been threshed, but most arable farmers are still waiting to see what the weather will do this week when the crop is already that far along. The DCA Indicative Price is €165, but that is for grass seed hay from last year and with very few transactions.
There is an abundance of feed potatoes. In recent weeks there was also quite some interest from livestock farmers who wanted to ensile the potatoes with the second or third cut of grass, but now that the silage is quiet, the demand is also dropping off again. "Price-wise, feed potatoes are very interesting if you compare them with other by-products. The biggest disadvantage is that you have to have sufficient feeding speed", according to a trader. The DCA Indicative Price for feed potatoes this week is €30 per tonne.
According to suppliers, there are few shifts in the by-products. Factories are now preparing for the holidays and will continue to operate steadily for the time being. Farmers whose cows are doing well now also see little need to drastically change the ration. The DCA Indicative Price for brewers' grains remains stable at €3,70 per percent dry matter.
In silage grass and silage maize, the steady work continues. Silage grass remains stable at €75 per ton. Maize does take a small step back. The DCA Indicative Price for silage maize has fallen by €5 to €90 per ton.