Hay prices skyrocketing

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Schmitty

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I was checking out the local listings today on Craigslist for farmers selling hay in my area, even though I have a couple guys I go to regularly when I need to get hay for the herd. I buy the round bales of course, as I am sure most if not everyone here that's not growing their own hay does, and I'm sure the ones that do grow it for their cattle put it up from the field in round bales as well. Anyway, last year my one guy that has very high quality hay was at $40 a bale last year and this year is $60 a bale, 500/600 pound bales. He sells haylage too, same diameter bales just heavier obviously. My other guy sells orchard grass in 900/1000 pound bales was $35 last year up to $50 this year. I was thinking that seemed like a big jump, but I understand it as fuel costs to operate are up, parts, maintenance costs etc. are up. Well when I looked at others listings today I saw prices for 500/600 pound bales starting at $75 per. Then they were as high as $175 per bale for 900 pound bales. And everywhere in between like $110, $135 per bale. These are up from last year as averages of $50-$65 that I usually saw. I've been buying from my regular guys so long that I was used to good prices. I went out to my big bale guy and he last month had probably a thousand bales, but had less than 75 today. So I picked up a dozen bales and will go back to get more asap as I don't want to run out before cutting season starts. I even saw ads from out of state posted wanting to buy hay from our area. I'm sure this is part of the reason the prices are ridiculous. $50/$60 bucks is up there, the rest is insane.
 
Schmitty said:
I was checking out the local listings today on Craigslist for farmers selling hay in my area, even though I have a couple guys I go to regularly when I need to get hay for the herd. I buy the round bales of course, as I am sure most if not everyone here that's not growing their own hay does, and I'm sure the ones that do grow it for their cattle put it up from the field in round bales as well. Anyway, last year my one guy that has very high quality hay was at $40 a bale last year and this year is $60 a bale, 500/600 pound bales. He sells haylage too, same diameter bales just heavier obviously. My other guy sells orchard grass in 900/1000 pound bales was $35 last year up to $50 this year. I was thinking that seemed like a big jump, but I understand it as fuel costs to operate are up, parts, maintenance costs etc. are up. Well when I looked at others listings today I saw prices for 500/600 pound bales starting at $75 per. Then they were as high as $175 per bale for 900 pound bales. And everywhere in between like $110, $135 per bale. These are up from last year as averages of $50-$65 that I usually saw. I've been buying from my regular guys so long that I was used to good prices. I went out to my big bale guy and he last month had probably a thousand bales, but had less than 75 today. So I picked up a dozen bales and will go back to get more asap as I don't want to run out before cutting season starts. I even saw ads from out of state posted wanting to buy hay from our area. I'm sure this is part of the reason the prices are ridiculous. $50/$60 bucks is up there, the rest is insane.
Click to expand...

Where are you located? If you think it is bad now, wait until next fall. With the price of fertilizer so high, hay is going to either be short or expensive everywhere.
 
As price goes up no doubt demand will go down. I think hay is getting to that point.
 
The vast majority of hay here is put up in big squares. The only people doing round bales are for their own use. Most hay is sold by the ton. Until this year the only time you saw hay sold by the bale was little squares which are primarily sold to the horse people. There is no grass hay to be found. There is some alfalfa at ridiculous prices. They are asking $280-$300 a ton. I see some listed by the bale in the $220-$240 range for 1200 pound 3x4x8 big squares. Still lots of stacks around. But the price is going to have to drop some or they will still be sitting on it when grass comes on.
 
I think prices around here are actually a little lower than I expected. probably more rounds than big square just because of limited storage for squares. local hay sale almost always have big squares selling $30 - $55/ton higher than rounds. last weeks sale report shows good square $150 - $175 and rounds $110 - $135. premium $275 for squares. no premium rounds sold.
 
I pay $60 per 5x5. That'a average. We had plenty of rain here last year, plenty of hay on the market.
 
DRY
Date RangeDAPMAPPOTASHUREA
Jan 4-8 2021482543369368
Feb 1-5 2021554601389429
Mar 1-5 2021609673416474
Mar 29-Apr 2 2021618697429502
Apr 26-30 2021629703433513
May 24-28 2021652709443523
Jun 21-25 2021670720469541
Jul 19-23 2021695750543553
Aug 16-20 2021695755564556
Sep 13-17 2021702776598572
Oct 11-15 2021798860710719
Nov 8-12 2021821906762832
Dec 6-10 2021840919778887
Jan 3-7 2022863931807913
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I edited this. I mistakenly said ton instead of roll.

It cost me almost $35 a ton roll to produce hay last year. A roll weighs about 800 pounds

It will cost me $70 this year.
 
Last edited:
sstterry said:
Where are you located? If you think it is bad now, wait until next fall. With the price of fertilizer so high, hay is going to either be short or expensive everywhere.
Click to expand...
I'm in the northern part of Oregon, about fifty miles from the coastline. There's a company down the road from me that trucks in tens of thousands of tons of the large ton square bales, they then compress them even more and send them to shipping containers to send overseas. Their volume has really dropped off for what they send out as I see literally mountains of rotted bales sitting and grassing over anymore. There's definitely more horse people in my area as the bulk of hay for sale is in the small 50# range bales. My buddy down the road grows a couple ton of the small square bales to get a farm tax deferral, I pay him $2 a bale and buy everything he has every year as I was the first one he ever sold it to and as long I keep buying it I am always his go to. Lol, makes his horse owning friends mad as they ask every year if they can buy them up. I hate dealing with the little bales as I use a round feeder and like to tractor round bales out with the hay spear. But I like knowing that I can put up the little bales and have them to use when I need them between cuttings. Plus the herd likes the variety, and if my wife gets another horse, I can use them with it.
 
My bales weigh around 950#. Currently if I can't sell them for $45-50 a roll, I'd rather save them for my herd.
 
Did I read you right, when you said you paid $40 and now $60 for 500/600 lb bales? I only ask cause that seems kind of high for a bale that size. Right now in my area the price has gone up some but not to bad compared to what the rest of you are telling me. There was a online auction that just ended south of me where big squares of baleage were only bringing around $50 a ton. It was certified organic as well, (hansenauctiongroup.com). Our weekly hay sales for rounds are 35-65 a round, big squares start at 45 and go up to 100 a bale for better/dairy quality.
 
I usually use CL prices for humor, but hay auction prices are also going up. Biggest price increase is for junk hay.

Running numbers on selling cows and selling cow hay is semi interesting.
 
Last edited:
Good grass hay here usually 35-45 a roll for inside 900-1000 pound bales. Not sure now just texted someone to ask. Had few people call we are hanging on to it will have to cut fertilizer back this year. Not really sure why thats always the price cost that much to make. Good for the buyer
 
uplandnut said:
Did I read you right, when you said you paid $40 and now $60 for 500/600 lb bales? I only ask cause that seems kind of high for a bale that size. Right now in my area the price has gone up some but not to bad compared to what the rest of you are telling me. There was a online auction that just ended south of me where big squares of baleage were only bringing around $50 a ton. It was certified organic as well, (hansenauctiongroup.com). Our weekly hay sales for rounds are 35-65 a round, big squares start at 45 and go up to 100 a bale for better/dairy quality.
Click to expand...
Yeah, you read that right. It's sad that that's what is/was considered to be a decent price for a roll of hay. Even for seasonal prices when hay was getting limited to what people had put up in the barn and where selling for must have must get prices it's never gone over $60 a roll. Usually prices start to drop as they want to get the hay barns cleaned out of last season's stuff and start gearing up for the upcoming season. We're had crazy weather and fires in the last 18 months in our area and I know that's probably played a part in the supply of availability. I think some of its just people trying to see how much they can get for their hay. Everything else has gone up like astronomically (used car prices, fuel, food, metal,etc) and availability has gone down, so I guess it's par for the course. I remember when I was buying chicken feed for $12 a bag last year and I bought a bag yesterday for our flock and it was $18 a bag. I know it's partially a regional thing as I live on the west coast and it seems like the cost of living here is generally just higher. Diesel at the pump is $4.00 a gallon. Heating oil is $3.80 a gallon currently. I paid $3.22 last month per gallon.
 
Schmitty said:
I was checking out the local listings today on Craigslist for farmers selling hay in my area, even though I have a couple guys I go to regularly when I need to get hay for the herd. I buy the round bales of course, as I am sure most if not everyone here that's not growing their own hay does, and I'm sure the ones that do grow it for their cattle put it up from the field in round bales as well. Anyway, last year my one guy that has very high quality hay was at $40 a bale last year and this year is $60 a bale, 500/600 pound bales. He sells haylage too, same diameter bales just heavier obviously. My other guy sells orchard grass in 900/1000 pound bales was $35 last year up to $50 this year. I was thinking that seemed like a big jump, but I understand it as fuel costs to operate are up, parts, maintenance costs etc. are up. Well when I looked at others listings today I saw prices for 500/600 pound bales starting at $75 per. Then they were as high as $175 per bale for 900 pound bales. And everywhere in between like $110, $135 per bale. These are up from last year as averages of $50-$65 that I usually saw. I've been buying from my regular guys so long that I was used to good prices. I went out to my big bale guy and he last month had probably a thousand bales, but had less than 75 today. So I picked up a dozen bales and will go back to get more asap as I don't want to run out before cutting season starts. I even saw ads from out of state posted wanting to buy hay from our area. I'm sure this is part of the reason the prices are ridiculous. $50/$60 bucks is up there, the rest is insane.
Click to expand...
They are 65 dollars here haven't been 50 in four five years.
 
Ya with everything going up I'm afraid I might have to raise my prices this coming year as well. I keep a eye on craigslist see what people are asking and I am seeing a upward trend. Me personally I sell it all by winter so I don't have to store it and I just have the customers to do so but hopefully prices don't go up to drastically I fear loosing repeat customers
 
This week price here in North Central MN at auction. big time drought last two years . My fields put out 25 % of normal for past two years. Protein is 60% of normal in hay in this area. I am looking for hay around here to make it into May.
........qnty......................................weight.. $/ton
MN 54 2ndC 3x3x8 Square 960 235.00 T
MN 30 G/A 4x5 Round 1161 235.00 T
MN 30 2ndC 4x5 Round 1160 230.00 T
MN 30 3rdC 4x5 Round 1210 225.00 T
MN 30 3rdC 4x5 Round 1181 225.00 T
MN 30 G/A 4x5 Round 1110 215.00 T
MN 34 Grs 5x6 Round 1245 215.00 T
MN 34 Grs 5x6 Round 1297 202.50 T
MN 34 Grs 5x5 Round 1217 180.00 T
MN 38 CRP 5x5 Round 1200 180.00 T
ND 21 CRP 5x6 Round 1244 167.50 T
ND 34 CRP 5x6 Round 1228 165.00 T
ND 34 CRP 5x6 Round 1285 165.00 T
ND 34 CRP 5x6 Round 1232 162.50 T
 

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