Round bales of silage are trading as high as €60/bale delivered in some parts of the country, sources have confirmed to Agriland.

With huge increases seen in fertiliser, diesel and plastic prices this year, the cost of making silage bales has increased significantly, and so too has the price that silage bales are trading for.

Agriland contacted an number of Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) county chairs to find out what prices silage bales are making in their respective regions.

Silage prices

It is apparent that there is a significant variation in silage bale prices across the country. Some dairy regions that suffered as a result of the drought this summer have had to start feeding silage earlier than usual and have a lot of their silage reserves used up.

It would seem that the number of silage bales currently available for sale in the country is low. However, more are expected to come on the market in January and February of 2023.

Other parts of the country have ample supplies of fodder and round bales are trading at a lower price in these areas.

Below is a sample of the prices given by IFA chairs in different parts of the country.

Longford

Longford IFA chairperson Gavin White told Agriland that “good-quality round bale silage is making €40/bale delivered” in this part of the country.

“There are lesser-quality bales available at lower prices,” he added however.

North Cork

The north Cork IFA chairperson Pat O’Keefe said that “they have been making from €50 to €60/bale around here in the last two or three months”.

“I know farmers that have paid as high as €60/bale delivered,” he said.

“Dairy farmers have the spending power and if they have to feed their cows in the spring, they’re going to buy. Some of these farms got caught in the drought.

“The weather has been favourable here for grazing in October and November so that will have helped them out a bit”.

However, O’Keefe noted there are some farmers who are “very tight” for fodder supplies.

“There was a lot of straw that was chopped around this part of the country because tillage farmers were incentivised to do so,” he said.

“This has been a mistake and tillage farmers should have been incentivised to bale all that straw seeing as 2022 was a very unique year.”

West cork

Commenting on the sale of round bale silage in his area, west Cork IFA chairperson Donal O’Donovan said: “€50/bale is the figure I’m hearing a lot. I’m quite surprised that there is a fair demand at the moment for round bales.

“I live in the eastern part of west Cork. If you had to take bales to Castletownbere from here you’re talking another 60-70km so that’s an extra €10/bale added to that for a delivery charge.”

He said that cows were housed earlier this year, “especially in dairy areas”, as a result of the drought and therefore a lot of bales were used up.

“It’s [the high prices are] probably a knock-on effect from that, there’s a lot of farms that were carrying over fodder from last year but a lot of that seems to be gone by now,” he said.

“I had a few people asking me if I knew anyone who had bales for sale and they don’t seem to be readily available.

“People that normally sell bales have a ‘wait and see attitude’ to see if they will use them themselves because, as I said, cattle were in a month earlier down here and looking at my own situation, I have a lot more pit silage used than I normally would.

O’Donovan added that there is “loads of grass around” and noted that an early spring would alleviate most farmers’ concerns on fodder supply.

Wicklow

Wicklow IFA chairperson Thomas Byrne said he is currently trying to source fodder for some of the farmers in his area.

Commenting on prices, Byrne said: “If the farmer selling the bales is a friend of the buyer, they might be lucky to get them for €35/bale.

“I have a few farmers that have promised other farmers they will have a few bales for them if they’re looking okay for supplies by the end of February.

“Largely speaking, €50/bale is the price and it’s not to be got on the open market.”

He continued: “Farmers are going to pay it I have a lot of farmers looking to buy bales. Every day it stays frosty, there’s more panic.

“This will delay grass growth depending on how long this cold snap lasts and cattle tend to eat more in the cold weather. Now if it there comes a good January and February and everything will be fine but at the present time there is definitely a scarcity and prices are hardening.”

Giving examples of silage prices in his area, Byrne said: “There was square bale silage for sale in north Wexford and the farmer was looking €75/bale for them and there’s not much more silage in them than a 4×4 round bale.

“There was a pit of top quality silage in this area was sold with 400t in it and it made €30,000 (€75/t) bought and paid for.”

Price outlook

As with most things in farming, the weather will determine the price and demand for round bale silage next spring.

If conditions get mild and growth comes early, demand for silage will be low but if conditions remain harsh and cold, growth will be later and demand for silage will be higher.