Boortmalt is not offering malting barley contracts to farmers for 2023. Instead, farmers are being offered contracts by merchants authorised to assemble grain for Boortmalt.

It’s understood that the base price for all such contracted growers will continue to be based on the FOB Creil price. This move has been flagged for some time, but will still come as a surprise to many farmers.

In the traditional Boortmalt growers region, merchants involved include Ballycarney Malt and Doyles of Cooladine, who are sharing Wexford growers between them.

Daltons are covering Kilkenny, Carlow and Kildare. Stradbally Town and Country are handling Laois growers.

In addition, merchants such as Devenneys in Donegal, Loughrans in Louth and Southern Fuel and Farm Supplies in Cork have been assembling barley for Boortmalt in recent years and will continue to do so.

Forward selling

Growers have been offered an opportunity to sell some grain forward for 2023 at €320/t.

Up to 20% of the tonnage contracted in 2022 can be sold now, although some growers are being warned that tonnages have not been finalised for next year as yet.

It is not known at this stage whether “tertiary tonnage” is being planned.

This happened last year for the first time, where some merchants assembled malt barley of specific varieties for ultimate delivery to Boortmalt through a second contracted merchant. The price paid to growers was a simple margin over feed.