Grain prices were not positive this week, as harvest continues in Europe and supplies are reported to be strong.

The French Matif wheat price for December dropped significantly. It closed last week at €200.75/t, down €4/t on the previous week’s close.

On Tuesday, it dropped below €200/t to €199.50/t and was at €199.25/t on Wednesday afternoon.

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This price peaked at €244.50/t on 18 February and with some peaks and troughs along the way, it has basically declined since then.

The London wheat price for November closed at £174.55/t last week, down almost £3/t on the week before. It was at £172.60/t on Wednesday afternoon.

The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) said this week: “The price of UK feed wheat futures for November is currently the lowest it has been at this point in the harvest cycle for four years, with the 2019/20 period lower than the current level.

“The seasonal chart for the last five years shows that prices usually decrease in August due to ample supply. While, in September, prices ordinarily stabilise and attempt to establish an upward trend.”

The euro declined in strength against the dollar slightly last week, but has come back up a little.

This could make European grain more attractive to buy.

As grain prices hit lows, it looks like farmers are locking their grain away. Ireland is an exception, in that farmers sell their grain green. In Europe, farmers are putting their grain into stores. This could help prices.

However, it may prevent prices from increasing dramatically, as when prices go up, some of that grain will be released on to the market.

Rapeseed

Paris rapeseed prices for November fell last week. The price closed at €475/t last week, down €10.75/t on the week before. It was at €473.75/t on Wednesday afternoon.

US corn

In the US, 73% of corn or maize crop was reported to be in good or excellent condition as of 3 August. However, Farm Journal in the US is reporting pollination problems in crops.

Tassles on the corn appear to be tightly wrapped by leaves and some of the kernels on the corn cob are not filling.

How this will impact on yield is yet to be determined and how widespread the problem is.

Native prices

There have been no prices reported by co-ops recently. However, farmers can ask their co-op or merchant for prices to sell at anytime and it is a good idea to ask this regularly to keep up to date and find an opportunity to sell at.