OMAHA (DTN) -- The DTN average dried distillers grains (DDG) spot price from the 39 locations DTN collects bids from was $108 for the week ended Sept. 14, unchanged from one week ago.

Based on the average of bids collected by DTN, the value of DDG relative to corn for the week ended Sept. 14 was at 88.48%, and the value of DDG relative to soybean meal was at 34.98%. The cost per unit of protein for DDG was $4.00, compared to the cost per unit of protein for soybean meal at $6.50.

Merchandisers told me demand is starting to pick up in the domestic market as cooler weather arrives in the upper Midwest, causing feeders to use more product. Also, the market feels firm ahead of some of the plants taking fall maintenance downtimes.

CIF NOLA (New Orleans, Louisiana) DDGS prices were firm with September at $143 to $150, and October at $143 to $150. Merchandisers noted that trade volume is increasing for shipments to Vietnam, with activity expected to pick up in October. The Coast Guard reopened the Port of Savannah Tuesday, Sept. 12 with no restrictions after closing ahead of the arrival of Irma. Container shipments were able to resume as the port was fortunate enough to not have extensive damage from the storm, but captains were cautioned to watch for any hazards that may surface in the water.

U.S. Grains Council (USGC) noted in a press release Sept. 13 that members of the 2017 Taiwan Agricultural Goodwill Mission pledged to purchase 5 million metric tons (197 million bushels) of U.S. corn and 500,000 tons of U.S. DDGS between 2018 and 2019. The commitment was made during a signing ceremony at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.

According to the USGC Sept. 14 weekly newsletter, the U.S. accounts for 95% of the DDGS imported by Taiwan. Almost all large feed mills in Taiwan currently utilize DDGS, but typically at extremely conservative inclusion rates. "As a result, the council is working with local nutritionists to better formulate diets to optimize caloric and nutritional efficiency using U.S. DDGS. Taiwan purchased nearly 240,000 tons of U.S. DDGS thus far in the 2016-17 marketing year, a 23% increase year-over-year."

		CURRENT	PREVIOUS	CHANGE
COMPANY	STATE		9/14/2017	9/7/2017
Bartlett and Company, Kansas City, MO (816-753-6300)
	Missouri	Dry	$122	$120	$2
		Modified	$60	$60	$0
CHS, Minneapolis, MN (800-769-1066)
	Illinois	Dry	$115	$115	$0
	Indiana	Dry	$113	$113	$0
	Iowa	Dry	$110	$110	$0
	Michigan	Dry	$103	$103	$0
	Minnesota	Dry	$110	$110	$0
	North Dakota	Dry	$110	$110	$0
	New York	Dry	$115	$120	-$5
	South Dakota	Dry	$108	$108	$0
MGP Ingredients, Atchison, KS (800-255-0302 Ext. 5253)
	Kansas	Dry	$108	$105	$3
POET Nutrition, Sioux Falls, SD (888-327-8799)
	Indiana	Dry	$108	$108	$0
	Iowa	Dry	$105	$105	$0
	Michigan	Dry	$108	$108	$0
	Minnesota	Dry	$105	$105	$0
	Missouri	Dry	$115	$115	$0
	Ohio	Dry	$108	$108	$0
	South Dakota	Dry	$105	$105	$0
`	`
United BioEnergy, Wichita, KS (316-616-3521)
	Kansas	Dry	$118	$118	$0
		Wet	$50	$50	$0
	Illinois	Dry	$127	$127	$0
	Nebraska	Dry	$118	$118	$0
		Wet	$50	$50	$0
U.S. Commodities, Minneapolis, MN (888-293-1640)
	Illinois	Dry	$111	$110	$1
	Indiana	Dry	$105	$103	$2
	Iowa	Dry	$105	$103	$2
	Michigan	Dry	$105	$100	$5
	Minnesota	Dry	$105	$100	$5
	Nebraska	Dry	$105	$102	$3
	New York	Dry	$120	$120	$0
	North Dakota	Dry	$105	$100	$5
	Ohio	Dry	$110	$105	$5
	South Dakota	Dry	$105	$100	$5
	Wisconsin	Dry	$105	$105	$0
Valero Energy Corp., San Antonio, TX (402-932-5901)
	Indiana	Dry	$110	$110	$0
	Iowa	Dry	$100	$108	-$8
	Minnesota	Dry	$100	$105	-$5
	Nebraska	Dry	$105	$105	$0
	Ohio	Dry	$110	$110	$0
	South Dakota	Dry	$95	$100	-$5
	California		$165	$170	-$5
Western Milling, Goshen, California (559-302-1074)
	California	Dry	$180	$180	$0
*Prices listed per ton.
	Weekly Average		$108	$108	$0
The weekly average prices above reflect only those companies DTN
collects spot prices from. States include: Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska,
Kansas, Illinois, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Michigan,
Wisconsin and Indiana. Prices for Pennsylvania, New York and
California are not included in the averages.

VALUE OF DDG VS. CORN & SOYBEAN MEAL
Settlement Price:	Quote Date	Bushel	Short Ton
Corn	9/14/2017	$3.4175	$122.05
Soybean Meal	9/14/2017	$308.70
DDG Weekly Average Spot Price	$108.00
DDG Value Relative to:		9/14	9/7
Corn		88.48%	88.48%
Soybean Meal		34.98%	35.71%
Cost Per Unit of Protein:
DDG		$4.00	$4.00
Soybean Meal		$6.50	$6.37
Notes:
Corn and soybean prices take from DTN Market Quotes. DDG price
represents the average spot price from Midwest companies
collected on Thursday afternoons. Soybean meal cost per unit
of protein is cost per ton divided by 47.5. DDG cost per unit
of protein is cost per ton divided by 27.

Mary Kennedy can be reached at mary.kennedy@dtn.com

Follow her on Twitter @MaryCKenn

(BAS/CZ)

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