Grain markets have not moved out of their slump, with the exception of malting barley and oilseed rape.

French wheat for December closed last week at €212/t. On Wednesday afternoon, it was €212.75/t, down from €214/t, but was not out of its recent range. UK and US wheat markets were also down.

With prices at lows not seen in some time and fears of weather affecting the market, it is likely some feed suppliers are preparing stocks for the winter which is something to keep in mind.

The November price for oilseed rape was at €475.75/t on Friday and had jumped to €492.25/t on Wednesday afternoon. Palm oil and soybean prices were helping rapeseed prices.

USDA report

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report came out on Monday 12 May. The global wheat outlook for 2025/2026 is for larger supplies, increased consumption and higher stocks. Supplies are to rise by 4.9m tonnes.

There are expected to be record supplies of maize in the US this year.

Global coarse grain production is also expected to be for record production and consumption and a decline in ending stocks.

French crops

The French ministry of agriculture has updated its crop area estimates. Perhaps most related to Ireland is barley.

The winter barley area in France is down 3.2% from the five-year average to 1.217m ha. Spring barley is down 10.1% to 523,000ha. Maize is down 2.6% to 1.41m ha. Rapeseed area is up 8.1% to 1.296m ha.

In Australia, wheat planting is estimated to be down 2.9% due to dry weather.

Malting barley

Malting barley prices seem to be going against the grain. From a low of €212/t four weeks ago, the July price was at €240/t for Free-On-Board (FOB) Creil spring malting barley at the weekend and at €242/t on Wednesday.

The Boortmalt average price is reported to be at €237/t after three weeks of averaging, but there has been no update from Boortmalt. It is not clear if this is minus the €10/t parity charge or not.

The October/March price for Planet is at about €235/t at present, while the January/June price is at €246/t.

Native prices

At home, spot wheat was reported at €225 to €230/t, but with poor demand, while barley was at €220 to €225/t. November wheat is reported around €230/t, with barley €10 to €15/t below this. Maize coming into the country is reported at €220/t for November.