Charcoal Prices

[ncrawshaw]

I realise that its the wrong end of summer, but I am producing some hardwood charcoal in the woods. Not massive amounts but I have produced about seven fertilizer sacks full so far and am producing another couple each week. I have a local shop outlet for it but am not sure what to charge for, say, a 3Kg bag. It is obviously locally produced lumpwood charcoal and I assume that means a premium can be charged over the usual imported variety. Is this in fact the case? Is there a going rate for it?

[Emma S]

I dont know how big bags are, but the standard 'small' and 'large' local coppice charcoal bags we have that we sell to our campers are £5 for a small bag and £8 for a big one. I think that might be quite high, but they are a captive audience!! think my friend sells his at £4.50/£7 at a local farm shop, and more in a trendy shop in town.

[greyman]

Nick,
Not sure what area you're based but down here in South Downs National Park around the Steyning area we have two retail customers that we supply - one a 'Farm shop' the other a' trendy' shop for affluent locals. We supply 3kg bags (although not sold as a weighed item - we just weigh each fill to ensure equal amounts and not doing ourselves out of revenue) to both of the shops. The 'Farm shop' sells out at £5.45 and the other asks £6.95 (and gets it!) all I see from both is £3.99 from the 'Farm shop' and £4.00 from the other. We buy our bags in from Selway and these cost us 38.6 p each inc of delivery (we get 300 at a time (they won't do discount for us even if we bought more). I have tried to sell into other retailers but they only want to pay about £2 odd a bag. So, from our experience yer not gonna make yer fortune but if you just want a bit of cash flow and can find a cheap bag supply, fill yer boots!

Having said this I did notice that some of the prices in Sainsbury's had gone up recently and I also read an article saying that the suppliers abroad were having trouble getting thier stock out due to floods. I know that doesn't go for all of the countries that make charcoal but maybe there's hope for us small producers here in jolly old England.

Good luck and happy colliering!

Greyman

[Bulworthy Project]

We pack our charcoal into 2.25kg bags. They retail from £5 to £7 depending on how posh the shop is. We do have Devon Wildlife Trust approval on it so that adds value and we grade using a 25mm mesh so people know that they are getting a quality product without dust or fines. People will pay for quality and it is hard to see how we could make a living if it sold for any less.

[ncrawshaw]

Many thanks Greyman and Bulworthy. I am in East Sussex. I own a healthfood shop which I work in about two days a week which leaves plenty of time for woodland activities too! I sell nets of seasoned logs at the shop which go well in the winter so I will be selling the charcoal there too. I will probably try around £6 for a 3kg bag. I use quite a coarse mesh sieve too so there's no dust or little bits and pieces. I use the little bits myself, (it burns just as well) and I put the dust on the garden.

[Emma S]

looks like we might be underselling after all!!
we are in East Sussex too.

[ncrawshaw]

Thanks for all the replies. On a related subject - paper sacks. Selway seem to be the only ones with pre-printed bags but they charge a lot for postage. I've trawled the internet for an alternative but they all seem to cost quite a bit, although you can get plain bags a bit cheaper. Does anyone have a less expensive source? Are there likely to be any suppliers at the Bentley Woodfair towards the end of this month?

[greyman]

Hello Nick,
You seem to have run into the same trouble as myself (and I suspect other small suppliers too) in that if you want the printed version you have to go to Selway. If you want plain you can find them all over the place but they are more. I trawl t'internet before ordering every time but have had to go through Selway every order. I've not seen any suppliers at Bentley in the past but who knows, one can live in hope. I did even look at setting up a screen print frame etc to print my own but don't have the time to sort it out as yet.

If your going to Bentley we'll be visiting on the Sunday - We have had charcoal in the SWOG tent over the last few years but we can't make it this year so will only be coming over on the Sunday. Maybe if you're around on the Sunday we can catch up?

Greyman

[ncrawshaw]

Hi Greyman, You have confirmed what I thought about sack prices! Not sure which day we are going to the Woodfair yet, we usually go on the Saturday. If we go on the Sunday I will pm you and we could meet up for a chat. I'll know nearer the time.

Nick

[Bulworthy Project]

We have our bags printed for us. It is quite an investment but worth it in the long run.
Having used Selway and learned from the experience, we now use Wyatt and Ackerman www.wyattandackerman.co.uk/