Western Canadian feedgrain bids have strengthened in recent weeks, bucking the usual seasonal harvest pressure.
Grain merchant Jay Janzen of CorNine Commodities in Lacombe, AB said barley prices have rallied by 50 to 60 cents/bu over the past couple of weeks, attributing the gains to solid demand and a lack of significant farmer selling as the Prairie barley harvest advances. In the key feeding area of Lethbridge, feedlots are showing bids in the range of $8.15 to $8.40 bu, with cases as high as $8.60.
Feedlots have been eager buyers of barley, Janzen said, with operations seeing the price relative to corn and deciding to cover their needs through the next few months. Indeed, some new-crop corn bids in the US are the highest since June, making barley the more attractive, lower-priced option.
On the other side, farmers are locking the bins until they see higher prices, or unless they need to move supplies to open bin space, Janzen said.
Click here to see more...