Winter barley averages £119/acre at standing crop auction

Standing crops of winter barley and wheat in Shropshire have sold for almost twice as much as last year, according to auctioneers Halls.

Prices averaged £119/acre for winter barley, £110/acre for winter wheat, £46/acre for oilseed rape and £92/acre for triticale at an auction at Bishop’s Castle.

The prices were reportedly driven by a large number of bidders interested in the high-quality crops.

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Auctioneer Peter Willcock said: “I was anticipating prices to be £20/acre up on last year, but they were almost double. It was a case of market forces dictating the prices.”

The firm has sold more than 1,800ha of standing cereals across Shropshire in the past week, with other auctions averaging between £65/acre and £78/acre for winter wheat and between £62/acre and £95/acre for winter barley.

Somerset

Almost 1,700ha of standing straw was sold at Sedgemoor Auction Centre through two evening auctions in late June hosted by Greenslade Taylor Hunt, with about a quarter of purchases being made online.

Winter barley averaged £100/acre and peaked at £140/acre, while winter wheat averaged between £79/acre and £88/acre with a top price of £130/acre.

Auctioneer Tom Mellor said: “The trade for straw in 2022 was lacklustre, with bidders showing no real ‘fire in their bellies’, but it was evident at the 2023 sales that this trend had been bucked and competitive bidding was experienced throughout.”