Judge every delivery before it is tipped. Straw should be bright, dry, springy and free of black or grey mould. A sour cellar smell means it has already fermented and lost carbon you paid for. DMR asks for freshly harvested material chopped to about 5 to 8 cm. Manure should be crumbly, not a slurry.
- Look: colour, mould patches, foreign matter, soil.
- Feel: dry and springy, or damp and matted.
- Smell: clean straw, not sour or mouldy.
- Weigh it yourself; do not count trolleys.
- Log supplier, date, weight and condition.