Feed mills across the country are extremely cautious in setting feed prices this week as the drought begins to put a serious strain on supply and demand of feed ingredients.

Speaking to feed merchants across the country on Wednesday, prices are varying greatly, as many struggle to secure delivery of ingredients from the ports. Mills are now checking their books on a daily basis to balance the supply-demand dilemma.

With their primary focus on sourcing ingredients from the ports for mixing rations, bulk sales of straights direct to farms is taking a back seat.

Mills have warned that “prices for some ingredients are climbing by €2 to €5 per tonne daily”, so farmers are being encouraged to keep in contact with suppliers and to price their rations every couple of days.

Palm kernel has run out at many mills across the country, as farmers look to source feed alternatives to get them over the current drought.

One feed mill reported that in the space of a week, “palm kernel went from €180 to over €200 per tonne”.

Belfast is the only port to which palm kernel is being shipped, so prices of this ingredient will rise rapidly the further south you go.

Compounded with this, the ports are filling their contracts with the larger mills first, meaning supplies to farmer buyers are small, if not non-existent.

Another shipment of palm kernel to the southern ports is not expected until August at the earliest.

There are strong variations in beet pulp prices too, with many predicting that this, along with soya hulls, are next in line to become scarce.

Beet pulp is mainly being sold mixed with other meals; 6mm mixed beet pulp is costing approximately €260/t, with 10mm beet pulp, which is more likely to come in an uneven ration, selling about €12 to €15 less.

Early indications are showing that barley is costing up on €35/t more off the combine than this time last year.

There are reports that many low-yielding spring barley crops are being sold as whole-crop for in excess of €900/acre, therefore costing the farmer over €1,000/acre in the pit.