Our benchmark spot prices (East Midlands)

Feed Wheat

Intraday trading saw sudden volatility after an unannounced visit from the US CIA chief to Russia triggered a wave of diplomatic optimism and long liquidation. Markets recovered quickly, though, as traders refocused on the physical realities of supply.

On the domestic front, regional markets are starting to invert, with grain moving north to south. While a large Scottish crop is boosting the barley outlook, Danish feed grains are currently too expensive to import vs our domestic prices. With most models pointing to a heavy UK feed wheat import requirement this season, it's hard to see our internal market easing any time soon.

Having closed last week at £205.00/t, the November feed wheat contract maintained solid ground at £206.50 on Monday, before dipping slightly to £205.75 on Tuesday, then surged strongly mid-week, climbing to £212.50 at Thursday's close.

Milling Wheat

In the US, winter wheat planting for the 2027 crop begins in early September under worryingly dry soil conditions across southern growing states. This tight outlook is feeding directly into UK delivered values, where September bread wheat into the North West is quoted at £232.00/t, with November delivery into Northamptonshire standing at £224.00/t.

Meanwhile, blockades continue to choke Eastern European trade: Russian exports have plunged over 70% following port strikes at Novorossiysk, creating a severe domestic oversupply behind closed ports, while Ukrainian exports are down 75% despite a completed 24.6 million tonne harvest. Safe corridor talks are gaining traction, but infrastructure damage means export capacity will stay severely restricted even with a breakthrough.

After starting the week steadily around €238.25 (£204.24) on Friday and nudging up to €239.00 (£204.88) on Monday, the Paris milling wheat December contract dropped €2.25 to hit a mid-week low of €236.75 (£202.95) on Tuesday, before rebounding aggressively to rally to €245.25 (£210.24) on Wednesday and advancing further to close at €247.25 (£211.96) on Thursday.

Feed Barley

Barley supplies are also historically low. Defra estimates English and Welsh on-farm barley stocks at just 111 Kt, their lowest since 2022 and an 18% decline year-on-year.

While the English winter barley harvest is complete, spring barley quality is proving highly variable nationally. High screenings and poor retentions in early cuts mean larger volumes of spring crops are being downgraded to feed.

That said, a big Scottish barley crop is bound to create a net UK surplus. This is keeping the domestic barley basis soft and highly competitive as an energy source in local livestock rations.

Oilseeds

Oilseed prices are getting a boost from the energy market, with Brent crude climbing 6.6% to over 94 dollars a barrel after trade tensions flared up between the UAE and Iran.

At the same time, Canadian canola crops are suffering under extreme 35-degree heat stress. South East Asian palm oil remains vulnerable to El Niño supply drops, while US soybean potential is highly variable—supported by active Chinese buying which has now filled 36% of its 25 million tonne US import pledge.

In the UK, some areas are reporting record yields above 4t/ha, and Frontier has introduced a 50% risk-share scheme to support growers drilling this autumn.

After closing Friday at €538.25 (£461.41), the Paris rapeseed November contract plunged to €522.00 (£447.49) on Monday, before mounting a strong recovery to climb to €533.00 (£456.92) on Tuesday and push further ahead to close at €540.00 (£462.92) on Thursday.

Wanted Crop

🌾 Group 4 hard wheat (min 10.2% protein) wanted for collection in the East Midlands. Moving in September 2026, with a guide price of £202–206/t ex-farm.

🌾 Feed barley wanted for collection across Scotland. To move from September to November 2026. Guide price of £155–165/t ex-farm. (Will take up to 20% moisture; 7-day payment terms available).

🌾 Feed barley wanted for spot collection across Wales, West Midlands & North West. Moving from August to September 2026, with a guide price of £189–195/t ex-farm.

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This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the content at the time of publication, Hectare Trading makes no guarantee regarding the data provided.