Chae1
Member
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
Do all merchants drive lorries? Cart it themselves.
What’s the point in straw merchants?
- Thread starter mountfarm
- Start date
oxonfarmer
New Member
- Location
- oxfordshire
Thats because there are 2 prices ex farm and delivered with grain, one with transport built in and one paying 3rd party to haul.
Once bitten, twice shy. I learned the lesson of cash on the field many years ago....
One chap (small Dealer) grumbled about writing multiple cheques, so I suggested he wrote one big one BEFORE he started hauling away off the fields. He carried on paying/load
- Location
- Ceredigion
95 % do
You see how farmers behave though . Go to auctions and pay £200 ton because they can't get straw and spoil it for everyone . Do you think a may who may bale 20- 000 tons of straw and sells to one or two customers wants do be dealing with God knows how many farmers
You wont see your new customers next year ,cause when its cheaper they will go where its cheapest ,
whats your thoughts ,on if you had agreed with 3 farmers ,to supply at £55 a ton ,and now its gone to £90/100 ,
stand on or run ,
its easy in a bad year to many heros about right now
- Location
- Ceredigion
Whats the point in doing anything . No one thanks you for it
borderterribles
Member
- Location
- South Shropshire
I had a fair spell on general haulage , maybe half of it farm related hay, straw, silage, fert, etc. As drivers, we 'd have had our collective a#%es kicked for blabbing the details of where we'd picked stuff up from!
pgilliat
Member
As already said, your new customers are sure to go to whoever is cheapest next year. Basing anything to do with straw on this year is crazy. Its definitely a sellers market, yes merchants take a cut, how much is negotiable. Maybe buying a lorry and seeing how easy it is to earn the £5t profit would be a good idea. They never break down, drivers are never an issue etc. I have sold private and through merchants and still do, everyone needs to be happy. Personally I wouldn't want to be without the merchants who not only know where to move your perfect straw in an easy year like this but can also move your wet rubbish in a year with plenty about.
Hilly
Member
- Location
- Scottish Borders.
Hmrc don’t even say thanks.
- Location
- Shropshire
Selling is always easy when there is a big demand and little product.
My father always talks of boom potato years (could be 1981? I was a toddler then) when spuds were over £500/t and the water was running out of the bags because the spuds had blight. Merchants were buying faster than he could grade them and in the end they removed the grader and put the bagger on the end of the hopper.
Few years later, £30/t potatoes were being rejected for no reason at all.
It’s called cycles
My father always talks of boom potato years (could be 1981? I was a toddler then) when spuds were over £500/t and the water was running out of the bags because the spuds had blight. Merchants were buying faster than he could grade them and in the end they removed the grader and put the bagger on the end of the hopper.
Few years later, £30/t potatoes were being rejected for no reason at all.
It’s called cycles
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I would take all @ollie989898 's 4000ac at £85/t at the moment seeing as I've just opened our latest straw bill and see that we are being charged £145/t for straw that was baled wet and is absolute shite but merchant not responding to our polite enquiry as to a reduction in price .......
1976 & 77 were unbelievable to be in spuds. Every potato farmer that year had a brand new car AND land rover, all P plated of course!
Hilly
Member
- Location
- Scottish Borders.
I’d say with Socail media or what ever the roll of the merchant is under pressure ? Easy now for folk to conect without middle man ?
- Location
- North Yorkshire
Your guys are ringing you up desperate for straw this year but if there is a glut next year let’s see how many of them take your price or ring round 5 other farmers/merchants to save their money.
No one is forcing you to sell to a merchant, if you want to have 10 phone calls to sell 10 loads of straw rather than 1 merchant phonecall then of course that is your choice but personally in the middle of harvest I get bloody sick of having the bother of being on the phone all the time to get the umm yeh/no/maybe hassle
No one is forcing you to sell to a merchant, if you want to have 10 phone calls to sell 10 loads of straw rather than 1 merchant phonecall then of course that is your choice but personally in the middle of harvest I get bloody sick of having the bother of being on the phone all the time to get the umm yeh/no/maybe hassle
Hilly
Member
- Location
- Scottish Borders.
Dose the average farmer not take ten loads ? Hard life been on the phone a lot mind don’t know how you manage .
ollie989898
Member
You're a saint man, you'm welcome to have the lot, however, my combine driver is a bit clumsy and known for engaging the chopper by accident. A lot. Also, can you bale it yourself. And within 30 seconds of it being thrown out the back of the combine. But no baling on Sundays. And the village don't like me much so please don't take bale trailers through the village that way, can you do a detour first. And any chance of having the muck back?
Did I mention our combine is an axial flow?
Hilly
Member
- Location
- Scottish Borders.
Blooming heck that’s not good ! It’s dear enough but poor quality as well ! Not on .
Johnnyboxer
Member
- Location
- Yorkshire
What’s the point of fuel suppliers ?
Taking a margin for nowt
May as well drive the tractor up to the refinery gates and cut out the middleman
Taking a margin for nowt
May as well drive the tractor up to the refinery gates and cut out the middleman
- Location
- North Yorkshire
I’ve no idea if they do or not, I let a merchant deal with it, the 3 I use all have their own wagons and can shift what I need within a day or 2, who does the buying farmer ring to shift 10 load of straw 100 mile east to west in a couple of days? Are there haulage companies out there waiting for a farmer to ring them to shift straw?
As for being on the phone sorting it out, some people like having a phone glued to their ear all day, personally I’d rather not.