Outside, it's going to get a bit wintry, with a bit of night frost later this week. The forage trade is also gradually entering its winter phase. There's some activity in the by-products market, and straw sellers are reluctant to part with it. There's little activity in the corn and silage market this week.
Supply and demand for some residual streams are not entirely aligned. Brewers' grains and potato steam peels are in high demand. These are, of course, available year-round, and it's quite worthwhile for several livestock farmers to keep them as a permanent fixture in their rations. The DCA indicative price for brewers' grains is rising this week to €4 per percent dry matter.
Pressed pulp, pressed fiber, or potato chips, for example, are reasonably readily available. If a livestock farmer is still looking for something, several traders say there are options at attractive prices. Feed potatoes are readily available. The group willing and able to feed potatoes as a loose product is not particularly large, and there is, of course, no demand for ensiling potatoes with corn or grass at the moment. The DCA indicative price for feed potatoes remains stable at €30 per tonne.
Fixed volumes
There's not a lot of trade in silage and corn. It's really only regular customers who buy a certain volume every few weeks. The DCA price for good, ready-to-feed corn has risen to €85 per tonne this week. The price for silage has remained stable at €85.
The high demand for straw for the balls is well and truly over. On the other hand, now that livestock is in the barns, demand from that source is likely to increase rather than decrease. Riding schools, in particular, are working harder. There's not much supply. French arable farmers think it suits me, we'll see later. The DCA indicative price for both wheat and barley straw rises to €170 per ton this week.
Hay trading isn't particularly busy, but grass seed hay remains in demand. "We regularly have a customer who wants a load. That was different last year when no one was asking for it," says a trader. The DCA indicative price for grass seed hay ranges from €170 for English ryegrass to €180 for tall fescue. Meadow hay also remains stable at €190 per ton.