THE mild spring weather of last week was in stark contrast to mid-November's summer heat, the wintery rains of late November and the heat of this week.
Crop quality has borne the brunt of this, yet has surprised most traders. Many wheat crops in northern Victoria have small hard grains and have avoided sprouting.
Despite this, rain on some crops has finally taken its toll.
General-purpose wheat is now offered for sale into Melbourne stockfeed mills.
While the market for ASW wheat into the stockfeed market is about $225 a tonne, GP wheat is available for sale at $210-$215 a tonne delivered to Melbourne mills.
The cheapest source of stockfeed wheat is now $15 a tonne cheaper than last week as a consequence of the poor weather this harvest.
Buyers report that wheat samples are failing to make flour-milling quality due to either low test weights or low falling number tests.
Feed-barley prices remain unchanged this week.
As the cheapest feed grain, demand for feed barley has sheltered barley from some of the weather impacts of wheat.
The availability of the lower grades of feed barley, such as F2 and F3, is yet to be confirmed.
Earlier this week the wheat and barley harvest was yet to get under way on most farms in the Central Highlands and Western District.
Headers are stripping canola and oats around Ararat and Tatyoon.
There are reports of canola crops yielding about 1.5-2 tonnes a ha, with some pleasing oil contents of more than 42 per cent.
There is a generally lower supply of protein in cereal grains this season.
In previous drought-stressed crops, barley has tested as high as 12 to 16 per cent, but this season samples are typically about 10-11 per cent.
Last month's heatwave has also pushed pastures into an early maturity.
According to stockfeed mills, the protein values of many pastures throughout southeast Australia is lower this season.
Sources of soluble protein such as grain legumes and vetch hay, as well as insoluble protein such as oilseed meals, are now being sought.
To boost protein values, stock feeders continue to import lupins from Western Australia.
These imports have been necessary as local supplies of lupins have suffered greatly during dry seasons.
The key supply of lupins in southeast Australia can be found in the eastern Riverina, but the higher drought-related prices of NSW should retain most of these lupins for buyers further north of the Murray River.
These lupins are priced relative to the cheapest source of protein, canola meal. Canola meal is about 38 per cent protein and priced at about $295 a tonne delivered to Melbourne.
While headers are still operating, wild weather conditions still have the opportunity to change markets.
