Capital Press: Signs point to winter hay shortage

Just as quickly as Keith Corp bales his grass hay, it’s on a truck. Corp has warned his Ashland, Ore., customers that hay may be in short supply this winter.

Signs point to winter hay shortage

Huge Western crop hits hungry market

Tam Moore
Capital Press Staff Writer

October 6, 2006

ASHLAND, Ore. - It's been a good year for Keith Corp, with lots of hay coming off his historic ranch east of this Southern Oregon town.

The strange thing is that almost none of that grass hay goes into Corp's massive pole barn. It's going right on trucks to anxious customers.

The semi-annual U.S. Department of Agriculture report on hay stocks won't be out for 10 weeks, but indications from Corp and other farmers hint that West Coast hay could be in short supply.

There's no question that the drought-stricken Midwest and the south Plains states have a hay shortage. But in the West, it's been a production year for the record books. Ample spring rain pushed yields for early cuttings, then good growing weather followed.

Before he climbed back on the tractor to bale what will probably be the season's final cutting, Corp said he has a certain indication of a winter hay shortage. When he called the Klamath Basin farmer who has supplemented Corp Ranch grass hay in years past, the answer was "No." The usual supplier had sold his entire stock to a California hay broker.

Hay market reports for last week (on today's Page 18) indicate Pacific Northwest prices are above last year, while many classes of California top-quality hay are trading a bit below 2005 September prices. Part of the California prices may be associated with ration-cost control efforts by dairies, who are the largest volume buyers of alfalfa.

The Columbia Basin last week saw big bales of premium alfalfa trading in the $125-to-$130 range per ton, compared with an average $115 in 2005. Export quality big bales traded narrowly at $145-149, compared with $133.60 one year ago.

In California, the bellwether FOB Petaluma market saw supreme grade alfalfa going for $175-190; it averaged $199 a ton in late September 2005. Supreme from the Northern California mountain valleys, however, was $190-200 at the ranch, about even with the $192.50 average last year. Tulare dairies were paying $187-192 for supreme, down from $212.44 in 2005.

Tam Moore is based in Medford, Ore. His e-mail address is tmoore@capitalpress.com.