EU: Malting barley maintains good premium over feed, end of season supplies look very tight

All season long malting barley maintained a good premium above feed barley, as EU supplies were not abundant and farmers were extremely reluctant sellers, H. M. Gauger GmbH said in their latest report.

End of the season supplies look very tight. There are hardly any offers in Germany and the Czech Republic, there seem to be more buyers than sellers for French 2rs, and the English industries started a while ago and continue to repurchase earlier export sales.

The British trade had overlooked that 2rw malting barley was of poor quality, therefore more 2rs is needed by the British industries. The U.K. may even have to import some barley before harvest in summer, the Gauger analysts said.

Denmark/Sweden are the only markets with available supplies, estimates are 350 – 400,000 tonnes in Denmark and Sweden combined. As the malting barley premium at farmgate in the Danish isles is still not attractive enough for swapping malting against feed barley, part of the surplus could easily disappear as feed.

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