Hay pricing

[birddog0304]

Making square bales of hay is a heck of a lot of work. Capital investment, even if you're a small timer like me, can be huge and if it ain't, you're likely on your back fixing the equipment at every turn, when you aren't running to buy parts. Nobody works free, not even family members. Taxes on the sales, taxes on the profit, taxes on the equipment and land. Quality hay needs to be weed free and of a good variety. Fertilizer, herbicides, lime and seed are cost drivers. Liability insurance in case someone decides to sue. Making quality hay isn't an exercise in charity. I laugh when people complain about the price of hay - especially when they don't have enough hot air to load their own (brand new truck), let alone make any hay themselves. Good luck with your hay endeavor. Let us know your opinion of hay prices once you start making your own.

Well stated. A farmers biggest investment is the land, I have been able to watch a neighbor neglect his land for 10 yrs now, however still cuts hay from it. It's amazing to watch the yield drop. Also the amount of broom straw / sage grass / weeds that takes over is amazing.

 

[CDennyRun]

Well, I ended up getting lucky, and found a really solid supply of some pretty good looking small bales. It's mostly timothy and orchard grass, and the bales are tight. $5 a bale, from the barn! The guy seems really straight forward, and looks like he takes good care of his equipment. This has been such a blessing for us!

Thanks everyone for the responses. It's been a great help hearing from the people that hay for a living. It's easy for a guy like me, who doesn't own the land, maintain the equipment, or pay the labor, to complain about prices going up. Thanks for the insight!

Regards,

Chris

 

[ultrarunner]

$18 to $20 for a regular bale at the feed store... going rate here in SF Bay Area...

They use to give a discount for coop members and stopped that last year on hay.

 

[CDennyRun]

$18 to $20 for a regular bale at the feed store... going rate here in SF Bay Area...

They use to give a discount for coop members and stopped that last year on hay.

There's no way I could afford to have our horses down there. That's just insane. With the California drought and all, I understand. Everything basically has to get trucked in. I worked at a feed store in Santa Rosa, just North of you about 16 years ago, and I remember Alfalfa was $10, and California red oat was about $12... Even back then, when y'all got rain!

 

[Soundguy]

I was wondering if any of you guys adjust your prices down, after the price of diesel drops significantly. In my area, small bales were $2.50-3.00 six or seven years ago. Diesel skyrocketed, and now people pay $10-16 for orchard grass, timothy and so on. This year diesel is close to what it was in 2003, and prices are still going up.

This kind of blows my mind. I understand that the prices of everything else haven't dropped, and it needs to be a profitable business. I just think that fuel prices should reflect hay prices in both directions. The cheapest I've found in my area lately is $8. I talked to a farmer the other day who is charging $10 about it, and he just said "It's supply and demand. I'm going to cash in as much as I can" I get that making optimal profit is EVERYONES goal in all industries, but I feel pretty off put by the farmers here locally for these crazy prises. It just seems dishonest.

This is another reason I can't wait to start baling my own! Thoughts?

Regards,

Chris

17 ys ago... small squares were 2$ 12-15 ys ago, small squares were 3$-4.50.. now they are closer to 6-7$

 

[bigbull338]

so far this is how much hay weve bought and what we gave for it.we picked up 12 bales of 2yr old for $20 a bale.the above hay wasnt 5 by 6 it was more 5 by 5.then we picked up 2yr old netwrapped 5 by 6 heavy fert hay for $25.we still have all of our winter hay.

 

[CDennyRun]

17 ys ago... small squares were 2$ 12-15 ys ago, small squares were 3$-4.50.. now they are closer to 6-7$

$6-7 isn't half bad. I'm not familiar with your state at all... just what you here and see on TV. Is there quite a bit of pasture in central Florida? Or is a lot of the hay trucked in?

 

[CDennyRun]

17 ys ago... small squares were 2$ 12-15 ys ago, small squares were 3$-4.50.. now they are closer to 6-7$

$6-7 isn't half bad. I'm not familiar with your state at all... just what you here and see on TV. Is there quite a bit of pasture in central Florida? Or is a lot of the hay trucked in?

Edit: Looking at google earth, you guys have a ton of farm land. Looks really nice!

 

[KevT]

Not sure where Soundguy is, but around here most of the hay makers won't touch under 85 acres, which is why my 20 is pasture. Most are HUNDREDS of acres. Lots of hay fields around and this was a good year for hay, but like everyone else, I have seen bad years too.

 

[CDennyRun]

Not sure where Soundguy is, but around here most of the hay makers won't touch under 85 acres, which is why my 20 is pasture. Most are HUNDREDS of acres. Lots of hay fields around and this was a good year for hay, but like everyone else, I have seen bad years too.

Ha ha, wow. People around here are willing to hay as little as a couple acres. Most of them being people like me that want to do it as a hobby, and hopefully break even feeding their animals one day. In my area, there aren't very many properties 85+ acres that aren't swamp/woods. If there is, it's probably a berry field, or will be soon.

 

[KevT]

FL used to be #2 in beef cattle, but 1600 people a day moving here has made progress drop us to like 16th. Hence why I left the city ( St. Petersburg) and moved here where there is still lots of Ag

 

[CDennyRun]

FL used to be #2 in beef cattle, but 1600 people a day moving here has made progress drop us to like 16th. Hence why I left the city ( St. Petersburg) and moved here where there is still lots of Ag

That's a bummer! W're dealing with that right now. We bought our property just less than a year ago about 3 miles away from the city limit, and now their talking about moving the city limit line to our quiet county road. It looks like they might be building a apartment complex just a mile or so away. Bellingham being a college town, it's full of flaming liberals... It's just not good. I need not say more.

 

[ultrarunner]

That's a bummer! W're dealing with that right now. We bought our property just less than a year ago about 3 miles away from the city limit, and now their talking about moving the city limit line to our quiet county road. It looks like they might be building a apartment complex just a mile or so away. Bellingham being a college town, it's full of flaming liberals... It's just not good. I need not say more.

Things will change and generally not for the better if you like a rural lifestyle...

I've been through it before and many of the folks that claim to like country living really only like the idea of it as in a Rockwell Painting...

My cousin actually had complaints from bringing in the hay on a Sunday because the city said no commercial work can be done on Sunday... he was trying to get it in before the weather changed.

 

[Happy Gilmore]

Things will change and generally not for the better if you like a rural lifestyle... I've been through it before and many of the folks that claim to like country living really only like the idea of it as in a Rockwell Painting... My cousin actually had complaints from bringing in the hay on a Sunday because the city said no commercial work can be done on Sunday... he was trying to get it in before the weather changed.

Massachusetts is where I live and I'll admit it can be a funny kinda state at times. One thing I will say though is we have a Right to Farm Law and it makes it a bit less of a hassle for farmers and farming in general. My town and others around have also begun adopting their own Right to Farm Bylaws, which is basically stating they support agriculture in town and the rural lifestyle. Some towns have also formed Agricultural Commissions which will serve as a means of educating community members not familiar with farming and a potential buffer between resident complaints and the farmer.

 

[KevT]

That's a bummer! W're dealing with that right now. We bought our property just less than a year ago about 3 miles away from the city limit, and now their talking about moving the city limit line to our quiet county road. It looks like they might be building a apartment complex just a mile or so away. Bellingham being a college town, it's full of flaming liberals... It's just not good. I need not say more.

Yeppers!!! I totally understand. I live about 30 miles north of the UF campus in Gainesville. That county has the highest taxes with the worst roads. I do crack up but I can see where it is needed, but around here some of the bigger farmers post signs on the fences explaining that they are a farm and have been, so sometimes it may smell, be loud, or have slow moving vehicles on the road. The county I live in only has ONE traffic light in the entire county.

 

[CDennyRun]

Things will change and generally not for the better if you like a rural lifestyle...

I've been through it before and many of the folks that claim to like country living really only like the idea of it as in a Rockwell Painting...

My cousin actually had complaints from bringing in the hay on a Sunday because the city said no commercial work can be done on Sunday... he was trying to get it in before the weather changed.

What a bummer man! This is very true. There are so many people in my area that have beautiful land and barns, but do nothing with them. All it's good for is a place for them to park their prius, and plaster their fence line with left wing political advertisements.

A friend of mine who lives WAY out in the county was pulling out of his driveway with a manure spreader, when a hug pack of bicyclist were coming down the road. He stopped and waited for them to pass to be polite. Going by they all flipped him off, and covered their noses. Yet it's literally illegal in my area for me to honk or yell at one if he's taking up the road, and I need to get somewhere. I could go on and on about the bicyclists...

Yeppers!!! I totally understand. I live about 30 miles north of the UF campus in Gainesville. That county has the highest taxes with the worst roads. I do crack up but I can see where it is needed, but around here some of the bigger farmers post signs on the fences explaining that they are a farm and have been, so sometimes it may smell, be loud, or have slow moving vehicles on the road. The county I live in only has ONE traffic light in the entire county.

Wow, that's awesome! If my county didn't have WWU, it would be a really great place. The town has a really cool history, a rich logging, and farming community, and for being a bigger small town is really cute. It's just the fruit-loops that spawn off the far left liberal teaching in colleges these day, that totally ruin a perfectly good community. It's just too bad.