Weekly Hay Market Demand And Price Report For The Upper Midwest As Of December 5,2014

Demand and Sales Activity

Compared to the previous week, small square bal e prices were down 8 % . Large square bale prices were down 6 % . Large round bale prices were down 1 % . Sales activity was very light to good .

For Nebraska , hay prices were steady compared to two weeks ago . Buyer inquiry has picked up the last couple of weeks in the Central part of the state. Many famers have op ted not to put up cornstalk bales this fall and some feedlots are starting to wonder where they are going to buy a cheap roughage source. Steady movement on dairy hay with trucks going out every week. Cow hay movement is slow, but some ranchers are starti ng to look for winter hay needs. For Iowa , there was not a weekly report posted.

In South Dakota , hay prices were steady to $0.10 lower. Winter weather eased this week as we saw temperatures across the trade area move back above freezing for daytime hig hs and didn’t see any of those below zero temps at night. Cows are able to graze the cornstalk fields without any supplemental feeding as the snow has melted and left or are starting to leave in northern parts of the state where the snowfalls were greater .

Demand was still very good for high testing hay or simply some lower testing alfalfa, but that which is clean and green, preferably out of a shed. Lower quality hay remains abundant and demand is only moderate at best. The official start of winter has n’t even begun, but the unofficial start happened on Nov 10. This early start caught many off guard but now with the weather moderating to normal or just above normal temps there isn’t the urgency there was to get hay laid in. Calves continue to be place d in feedyards keeping the demand for high quality grass hay high.

For Missouri , alfalfa hay prices were steady on very limited alfalfa hay sales . Most cattle producers have begun the winter feeding season. Hay business continues to be inactive to ver y limited. Even with feeding taking place, the majority of farmers have plenty of available feed without looking off farm at this point. Hay prices continue to be weak, but have dropped to the point producers likely aren't covering production cost as is. As typical markets of dairy and high quality horse hay are slightly stronger due to the difficultly of production, but even these markets are struggling due to cheap corn prices and low milk prices.

In Southwest Minnesota , hay prices were $ 9.15 low e r o n light sales

The demand for Illinois hay remained light to moderate, with market activity slow to moderate, for moderate to heavy offerings. Prices were $13.65 higher. They were steady to firm for the higher quality hay, with lower quality hay trendi ng steady to weak. While many producers were getting some calls and interest for hay, many buyers delayed buying for a while and not making a purchase. Interest was lower this month for dairy hay and beef, but remained good for horses. The demand for wh eat straw remained good to very good, especially for small square bales, with trading moderate to active, for light to moderate supplies of straw.

For Wisconsin, hay prices were $ 3.95 low er at a quality - tested hay auction in Lancaster . Straw pric es i n the Midwest averaged $ 3. 27 per s mall square bale (range of $ 1.50 to $ 5.00 ); $ 41.25 per large square bale (range of $ 22.50 to $ 60.00 ) ; and $ 43 . 19 per large round bale (range of $ 28.75 to $ 5 5 .0 0 ). Compared to the previous week, straw pric e s for small squa re bales were 4 % higher . For la rge sq uare bales, prices were 3 % low er . For large round bales, prices were 7 % higher .

Source:uwex.edu