High-quality alfalfa hay supplies are tight |
| By Seth Hoyt |
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The hope of producing high-quality alfalfa hay in new crop first cutting has been dashed by rain in southern Idaho and in the Columbia Basin in Washington. A large amount of hay has been rained on in both areas. Combine this with rained-on or overgrown alfalfa hay in the Central Valley of California, and the result is much lower supplies than normal of early season, high-quality alfalfa hay in the West. Nevada and Utah new crop alfalfa hay will begin this week in some areas. While demand from dairies in California, Idaho, and Washington for new crop alfalfa hay is much lighter than normal, some dairies have indicated that they must purchase higher-quality alfalfa hay to feed during the hotter summer months. The question is when will they come into the market? There has been good inquiry from exporters for higher-quality, new crop alfalfa hay. |
