Boortmalt and its grain growers met on Wednesday, but no progress was made to strike a deal for the coming season. With spring planting only a month away, seed deliveries should be occurring now.

IFA grain committee chair Mark Browne said that the negotiating committee will provide an update at a growers’ meeting, probably in Carlow next Monday.

Last Monday, a large gathering of growers effectively rejected the pricing mechanism offered by Boortmalt following months of negotiations.

New proposal

The decision to scrap the MATIF milling wheat as the basis for the malt barley price was welcomed. However, there was scepticism for the proposal to replace it with another French grain market the Creil malting barley price.

The option to sell forward is being removed, with the price determined by 20 price dates, taken weekly from April to September. The price this mechanism would have delivered on Monday was €192.50/t, €4.50/t more than the MATIF wheat base would yield. Farmers expressed the fear that this mechanism would fail to reflect a buoyant market. As one described the MATIF model “when milling wheat got scarce, the specifications were relaxed, and the price dropped”.

Boortmalt’s removal of existing haulage allowances was heavily criticised, particularly as new growers in Donegal, Cork, Tipperary and Louth are reportedly being offered haulage allowances.

A minimum price was repeatedly called for, with €200/t the benchmark.

It was pointed out that this price is not unreasonable when Boortmalt’s 2019 fixed price offer of €230/t is considered. This offer was made last September, and is for 20% of contracted tonnage for the coming harvest.