U.S. hay price rises in April; California major influence

The April year-to-year price received for all hay types declined by $15 per ton across the 27 reporting states in USDA's Agricultural Prices report released May 28. This was not surprising given the build-up in hay stocks from 2014 to 2015.

What was curious is that the April 2015 U.S. price of $173 per ton was $13 higher than March, given that the all-hay price actually went down in 12 states, stayed the same in two states, and went up by $5 or less in nine states.

So, how does the month-to-month U.S. average hay price jump by $13 when a large majority of the states declined in price or had much smaller increases? The answer: California.

According to a USDA official contacted by Hay & Forage Grower, the U.S. average hay price is calculated on a weighted average and the large volume of hay sold in California severely skewed the U.S. average price to the $13 increase. The month-to-month price rise in California was $23, a significantly different picture than was seen in virtually all the other reporting states.

The lowest all-hay prices were reported in Missouri ($91), Nebraska ($94), North Dakota ($86), and Texas ($94). The highest average price received for all hay types belonged to Pennsylvania ($246).

Alfalfa hay prices followed a trend similar to all-hay, and once again California had a major impact. The U.S. average price for alfalfa hay in April was $184 per ton. This was $12 more than the March price, but $23 less than one year ago. The prices encompass all levels of forage quality.

California saw a month-to-month alfalfa price increase of $25 per ton, while the next highest price rise was Michigan at $5. Eighteen of the reporting states either had reductions in alfalfa prices from March or stayed the same.

Kentucky, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Washington had higher average alfalfa prices in April 2015 compared to 2014. The highest per ton alfalfa hay prices were reported from Pennsylvania ($245) and Texas ($230).