- What are straw prices like during the 2024 harvest?
- What contributes to lower straw availability?
Straw supply lower than demand
Let's start with what determines straw prices. The rates depend on, among others: from the region, but not only. An important aspect of each product is its availability. It is no different in the case of straw. What about availability? By following the market, you can see that we have higher demand than supply. Is there no straw? It is there, but it is used differently than it was a few years ago. However, it is worth noting that even on farms that intended to sell straw or use it for breeding purposes, there may not be much of it. After all, the drought has taken its toll and grain is low on many plantations, which also directly translates into the amount of straw on the market.
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Very poor wheat harvest in France. It hasn't been this bad for years
A significant increase in awareness of the fertilizing value of straw is also very important for the availability of straw. When properly treated, it not only provides nutrients, but also enriches the soil by increasing organic matter, and thus also contributes to increasing the level of humus in the soil. Let's also not forget about the carbon farming ecoscheme, in which one of the practices is mixing straw with soil (by the way, the carbon farming ecoscheme was eagerly chosen by farmers, and the most popular one, e.g. a year ago, was the practice of mixing straw with soil). These factors must directly influence straw availability. And if someone decides to sell it, the prices are not low. This is not good news for buyers, especially in the case of breeding farms, where straw obtained from their own fields is not enough to cover the needs of animal production. On the other hand, the statement that when we sell straw we sell fertilizer is becoming more and more popular. And more drastically, some people – obviously opponents of straw sales – say that the field is being robbed in this way. Without going into details, let's move on to the offers for straw presented by the bidders.
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Do you sell feed grain? Remember to register and obtain a feed number
What are the prices for straw from this year's harvest?
For 120-125 cm bales, sellers expect prices in a fairly wide price range, i.e. most often PLN 60-120/pcs. However, there are also lower valuations. For example, in central Poland we can find rye straw from this year's harvest for PLN 55/piece (120 cm beam). In southern Greater Poland we can find straw for PLN 60 per piece (winter barley bales 130 x 120 cm). In turn, in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship we can buy 120 x 150 cm bales for PLN 70. In Mazovia, one of the offers is PLN 150 / pc, although the price applies to 150 cm bales and the price includes transport to the buyer's address. In the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, the cost of a 125 x 125 cm bale in one of the offers is PLN 50-60 per piece, although the offer covers a large area.
Straw in small cubes rarely appears in advertisements, but when we do find such an offer, the prices are around PLN 5/pcs. A large cube costs at least PLN 100 per piece, but this is the minimum rate. It's usually a bit more expensive. However, remember that we are talking about a cube of straw weighing about 400 kg.
It is relatively rare to find valuations by hectare, but such offers do appear. We are talking about prices ranging from PLN 1,000-1,100 per hectare of straw. These are the lowest rates – some valuations are around PLN 1,500 per hectare. We will usually pay PLN 300 to PLN 400 for a ton of baling straw.
In the case of selling straw directly from the swath, we have two options – either selling by weight or pieces from a given field. In the latter case, you have to pay PLN 20-25 for a 120 cm bale, although you can also find offers where the same bale is valued at PLN 50. Please remember that the prices apply to straw, where the entire pressing and loading process is the responsibility of the buyer.
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More expensive in breeding regions
Higher straw prices almost always concern regions with a greater density of farms with animal production, where competition for the product is greater. It is not cheap, but on the other hand, when deciding to sell straw, you must take into account all potential factors affecting its valuation. Here you need to take into account, among others: the fertilizing value of straw (it is worth calculating the price of the pure ingredient, although we must remember that the availability of mineral fertilizers and crop residues is not the same). In turn, when "entering" the practice of mixing straw, there is a direct economic factor.
