Growers were challenged in planting by exceptionally wet conditions but market signals pointed to better times ahead.
Federated Farmers arable chairman Guy Wigley said dairy demand was phenomenal so there was no uncommitted grain left with prices expected to hold strong until the new season’s harvest.
“So, come January we expect autumn-planted barley will be gobbled up in a flash and at premium prices.
“There will be no carryover and with instant uptake of early barley it will be a normal season,” he said.
Despite the battle with boggy soils to get spring wheat planted, Wigley rejected any suggestion of a looming barley glut.
With continued wet weather and the cut-off for planting wheat nearing, growers were starting to turn to planting barley as an alternative.
“But the notion of a barley glut is ill-informed,” Wigley said.
“All we are doing is returning to a normal season after last season’s bumper wheat harvest and bringing barley back to where it was three seasons ago when supply only just met demand.
“In saying that, for every week late with planting we are losing yield so therefore what looks like a normal planting, due to the lateness will result in reduced tonnages.”
“Rest assured, the arable industry is doing its best to meet demand and that may mean some adjustments to initial planting plans but wheat or barley – there will be ample feed grain harvested but no glut,” Wigley said.
AgriHQ analyst Amy Castleton reported a surplus of peas this year because exports were lower than usual but it had now been taken up, with peas selling at their contracted price of $420/t.
Pea contracts for next season were only just appearing but expectations were for a reasonable take-up because the contracts provided another option aside from barley.
There had been strong demand for maize silage in Waikato where dairy farmers were substituting it for palm kernel.
Maize silage demand and prices were weaker in Manawatu.
There had been good demand for maize contracts for next season but growers were not keen to sign contracts at prices they deemed too low, which was resulting in a stalemate, Castleton said.
Growers wanted at least $400/t to contract maize for the 2018 season.
Several new Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) funded feed crop products were set to deliver more than $50 million a year in economic benefits by 2025.
Trials of pallaton raphno, a new supplementary feed crop, showed improved pest and disease resistance, higher yield, improved persistence and better water use efficiency.
Recent onfarm lamb finishing trials resulted in profitability gains of $2000/ha compared to forage rape and grass pasture.
Another notable development was Firefly kale as part of the Cleancrop Brassica System bred to tolerate the herbicide DuPont Telar.
PGG Wrightson Seeds product development manager Andy Dumbleton said field trials demonstrated excellent control of wild turnip weed and 21 other weeds.
