NSW grain transport and storages are being tested to the limit as farmer’s harvest, what is now expected to be, one the largest winter crops on record.
Dry and warmer weather through NSW allowed farmers to make sizable inroads into the 2016 harvest.
Grain trucks are in high demand as farmer battle to move grain off farm to keep up with the harvest pace.
Record large yields through northern and central NSW, combined with the modern, high capacity headers has left farmers struggling to move the grain off farm quickly enough.
This is being further complicated by slow turnaround times at some grain delivery sites.
Trucks are being forced to wait for two to three hours in some locations to dump grain as the storages also struggle with the harvest barrage.
Wheat yields continue to impress through northern and central NSW. Farmers are still reporting general yields of four and five tonnes a hectare. This trend is expected to continue into southern NSW.
Some now believe the NSW wheat harvest could comfortably exceed 10 million tonnes, and possibly exceed the 2010-11 record crop of 10.5 million tonnes.
Early harvest deliveries have GrainCorp forecasting one of their largest seasons in northern NSW for several years.
After a series of disappointing seasons, GrainCorp expected to receive around 600,000 tonnes of grain into Coonamble and Walgett facilities this harvest.
There were 1.5 million tonnes of grain delivered into GrainCorp’s NSW storages last week, up from about one million tonnes a week earlier.
This brings the total harvest deliveries into GrainCorp’s NSW facilities to 2.8 million tonnes.
The bulk of the harvest activity is in northern and central NSW.
Harvest pace in southern NSW is expected to escalate this week.
Grain harvesting is advanced in northern NSW with some growers already into the final stages. Queensland’s grain harvest is wrapping up apart from some parts in the Darling Downs.
GrainCorp has already received 1.6 million tonnes of grain into its Queensland storage network, the most since 2011-12.
Chickpeas have comprised a significant proportion of the Queensland grain deliveries on back of a record large planting.
Chickpea prices recovered last week following sharply declines a week earlier. Exporter bids for chickpeas into Brisbane were $70/t higher at $790/t, after tumbling by $140/t a week earlier.
Despite last week’s modest rally, chickpeas prices have tumbled by 15 per cent in the past four weeks, and are significantly off the season highs of more than $1000/t.
