Hay Prices Trend Up
Welcome to Open range, I’m Susan Allen reporting from Cashmere Washington, prepare yourself, like everything else, the price of hay is going up. I’ll tell you more after the break. Sometimes it seems like you just can’t get ahead. This spring for us has been full of unexpected vet bills and rope horses to rehab, now more bad news! I just read that because the 2010 hay crop is nearly gone and less hay was planted, we could be paying over $200 dollars a ton for feed this year. There is always a lot at play regarding the costs of hay. for stsarters due to the fact that Japan is our number one importer, it remains to be seen how the aftermath of the tsunami will impact Northwest Hay prices. Prior to the disaster Japan’s hay imports overall actually decreased four percent, they also begin buying from Australia and growing more of their own. A leading hay analyst predicted this February that Saudi Arabia will become a player in the West Coast hay market this year due to the fact they have a large dairy industry and lots of goats and camels.” Another overlooked market for Northwest hay is California a state that can no longer produce enough feed for it’s own equine, dairy and livestock operations. They currently buy hay from Oregon, Nevada, Utah and Arizona (who by the way has delayed first cutting due to the cold spring.) So in the end the outlook doesn’t bode will for those of us dependant on hay. Meaning expect hay prices to be high because there is less old crop and less new crop.
