This week, Eoin Lowry tries to get behind the disparity between the price of green barley and the price farmers are paying for ration.

We do not fully appreciate the actual value of rolled barley – in some cases it represents better value on a per-unit-of-energy basis than grass silage.

Formulating a typical cattle ration is not a complex procedure with rolled barley being the foundation of any high-quality ration.

It is an area where we need to strip out the marketing spin and realise that simple is not only cheaper, but better.