Many tillage farmers are reporting that they have taken orders for most or all of their 2019 straw crop already.

Straw demand exceeded supply last year, and very little is being carried over.

Some farmers used alternative bedding such as rushes, woodchip and peat this past winter due to the shortage and cost of straw.

Uncertainty

As a result, there was some uncertainty as to what demand for straw would be like this year.

Price is generally not agreed where orders have been lodged.

The expectation is that prices will not reach the highs of 2018, but neither will they return to the €10/bale 4x4 barley straw base price often received in the southeast ex-field.

The few prices reported are in the region of €20 for 4x4 winter barley straw.

Meanwhile, grain prices have continued to maintain their recent steady climb. The MATIF wheat price for December 2019 reached €185.50 on Tuesday, having been higher earlier in the week.

Maize plantings have continued in the United States, but markets are closely watching for information as to how much sown crop has been destroyed or damaged by the recent rains.

Overhang

In-store stocks of 2018 barley are far from cleared as the start of the 2019 harvest approaches. At this stage, while some is moving at a price, it’s mostly to create room in grain stores for new crop.

Merchants and farmers left holding grain are waiting in the hope of a price rise for the coming season to minimise the losses incurred from being caught with last harvest’s expensive barley.