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Summary
Driving Prices Up
- Green drought enveloping much of Victoria has squeezed margins further with fodder prices rising in recent weeks.
- Vetch is setting back farmers more than $400 a tonne, depending on the region, while cereal hay is hovering around the $350 a tonne mark.
Driving Prices Down
- Barley prices have been lacklustre due to frost, a lack of in-crop rainfall and hail. Farmers are hedging their bets by storing a portion of grain on farm and selling directly from the header to spread risk.
- Weather conditions across the country has seen prices significantly decrease across the board. Rumours regarding frost damage, low quality hay, and the need to harvest early has impacted pricing. In conversations with farmers, this did not eventuate to the degree reported, however the news affected a drop in price regardless.
- There is very little movement of hay across the country, in part due to it being the harvest season. Many are waiting to see how the season concludes before allowing sales to recommence.
Local News
- Northern NSW’s favourable seasonal conditions have farmers reporting average yields of 5t/ha to 6t/ha averages for dryland wheat.
- In comparison, southern NSW and Victoria have suffered from dry seasonal conditions, frost and hail which have taken a toll on crops.
- Successful crops across NSW, QLD and WA are more than offsetting the losses faced in SA and Western Victoria.
- Frosts across the Wimmera Mallee have forced some farmers to bale their lentils or barley.
- The current shortage of high protein crops will push up the price for Lucerne hay and could directly impact dairy farmers if prices are unaffordable.
- The BOM has released a Climate Driver Update, reporting that the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) remains neutral, with sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the central equatorial Pacific Ocean at ENSO-neutral levels.
- The Bureau of Meteorology has formally declared an El Nino event in the Pacific Ocean, to Australia’s east, but also a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD), to the west. Communities across Australia are already experiencing, and managing for a hotter and drier spring, and are on alert for heatwaves, drought and increased bushfire risk.
- Buyers are encouraged to feed test and view fodder before purchase to be sure of the quality of feed.