The prospects of a week of dry, mild weather is set to see a surge of fertiliser moved on to farms and spread on fields. There is a lot of catching up to be done with just 40% of last year’s fertiliser sales sold so far in 2016.

The surge in demand could see the downward fall in fertiliser price halted, as farmers look to get fertiliser quickly, rather than focus fully on price.

Some good deals have been done in the last week by purchasing in groups and buying large loads. Bulk urea delivered in full loads is as low as €308/t in north Leinster.

ADVERTISEMENT

Big bags of granular urea are as low as €338/t in north Leinster and €345/t to €355/t in the rest of the country.

There is huge variation, with farmers in Connacht quoted as high as €425/t for smaller loads on credit.

The price of CAN has slipped to as low as €258/t in north Leinster. One farmer who contacted me had bought a full load of CAN on pallets delivered to north Leinster for €264/t. The best prices in Connacht are €275/t, but again there is huge variation, with up to €325/t charged in some cases.

SulphaCAN has been priced at €280/t to €300/t for smaller amounts, but one farmer who contacted me said he had done a deal at €255/t for large volumes and 10:10:20 at €387/t.

Another farmer got 18:4:10+S for €365/t delivered in the southeast. The price for 27:2.5:5 ranges from €370/t to €430/t, while 24:2.5:5 goes from €376/t to as high as €450/t in some areas.

Urea-based 27:2.5:5 is coming in at €350/t to €360/t and 24:2.5:5 is €360/t to €370/t. 10:10:20 is selling for €395/t to €460/t and 18:6:12 is making €386/t to €445/t

Straight potash starts at €380/t, but some deals have been done at €365/t.

Make sure you shop around and agree not just a price, but payment terms. Most merchants are giving one to four months’ credit for payment. If no price is negotiated, the fertiliser goes on account at a high price and the interest charges start.

Have you got a better deal on fertiliser this spring? Let me know by sending a text to 087-236 2293.

Fuel prices up

Fuel prices lifted by another 1c/l this week. Green diesel is trading at 49c to 50c/litre, with kerosene trading at 47c to 48c/l in some areas.

Car diesel is now moving back over the €1/litre mark.

Straw, hay and silage prices

The trade for straw has started to slow again, but there is straw and hay moving west. Prices for round bales have lifted, with most farmers now looking for €10 to €12/bale out of the shed. Many farmers in the west are paying €16 to €20/bale, depending on destination. 8x4x3 bales can still be bought for €20 to €22/bale out of the shed. The trade remains very slow for hay, with 4x4 bales sold for €20 each and horse hay up to €25. A small number of round bales of silage have started to move at €16 to €18 each. The fodder beet pulled last week is in good demand, trading from €30 to €40/t out of the yard.

Vaccination prices

It’s getting closer to vaccination time for many breeding herds.

In an Irish Farmers Journal survey, 50ml bottles of Leptavoid H (25 doses) vary from €1.95 to €2.50 per dose.

The 20ml bottles range from €2.25 to €2.68 per dose. Bovilis BVD (50 doses) ranges from €2.72 to €3.02 per dose. Spirovac (25 doses) is at €1.86 a dose.

Other vaccine prices were Rispoval IBR live (50 doses) at €2.10 per dose, with one farmer buying 10 doses for €2.20 per dose.