# Hay prices



## endrow (Dec 15, 2011)

I wonder what the hay price is like in your area


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## LaneFarms (Apr 10, 2010)

Small squares $5 at barn, barn stored rolls $45-55, outside rolls $35-45.


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## Hayman1 (Jul 6, 2013)

Small squares 6 at barn, barn stored netwrapped 4 x 5s of good quality mixed grass 60


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## Shetland Sheepdog (Mar 31, 2011)

40 lb bales of way mature 1st crop mixed grass = $5.00 at barn, customer loads.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

$7 small squares, 42" @ 60# price break @100 qty......rounds 900# no net, stored outside 25-45 depending on cut....


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## weatherman (Dec 5, 2008)

Sold last 480 small square bales Wednesday for $6/bale of alfalfa/grass 3rd cutting


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## DKFarms (Aug 11, 2008)

$6 small squares bermuda in barn, $35 to $45 for 4x5 round bermuda. Quality round bale prices stay depressed around here because when someone sees a round bale they think it's only cow-quality hay and don't want to pay any more than for a bale of mixed grass or junk hay. Thank heaven for discriminating horse customers. They are the ones that keep me in business.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

Bale up anything with a bit of grass and put it in a big ole round bale and it all is the same to most peeps, just becomes a matter of price....I personally can't work that way, I'll sell my equipment lease out my fields and have "fun" doing other things with my freed up capital.....

I have some rounds @900 # for 25$.... But it was on the ground for 14 days, baled up with a relative humidity of 90+% it can't help but have some mold issues.....that's cow hay....but the successful cattleman knows he needs to buy quality in order to maintain weight over the winter, that's not for him unless he's desperate....


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

Doesn't anyone price hay per ton?


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

8350HiTech said:


> Doesn't anyone price hay per ton?


Around here? The only person that figures it by the ton is the farmer, it's all sold by the bale here...wish it wasn't tho


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## AndyL (Mar 9, 2013)

Wish I had more hay to sell. All gone, except what I'm holding for my own use. But I did manage to get $40 for some 4x5 rolls of jiggs. Ya just gotta love those foolish, I mean, good, horse people. My horses eat cow hay just fine.


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

I went from the highest price around to the lowest in one season. Everyone has raised price on squares to 3-3.50 out of the barn around here except I saw someone selling 2nd cut out of the barn for 5$ a bale for 35 lb bales.

The last of my 2.75/bale hay is leaving today, new price is 3.25$.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

8350HiTech said:


> Doesn't anyone price hay per ton?


I sell everything by the ton.It is common for this area to sell by the ton.


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## bensbales (Jul 18, 2011)

$5 for a 40# bale of late first, $6.25 a bale for 2nd cut price includes delivery and stacking for 20 mile radius 100 bale min. Hay in quebec, just north of the border( montreal bubble) is going for

$200 to $250 a ton( 2000 lbs)


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

I like selling per bale a lot better then per ton. It's less hassle. No following someone to the local scale after they load up. Plus I believe you can get more for your hay selling per bale. Especially small squares. Paying $10 a bale feels better then paying the larger amount of $300 a ton to the hay buyers here. Smaller numbers make it seems they are paying less. But one must be sure they actually know the weight of their bales or they could be losing out if they are heavier then a person thinks.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

850-900lb round bales: 
Mulch grade lower quality $40 
Middle quality for cattle $50
Horse quality $70


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## dbergh (Jun 3, 2010)

swmnhay said:


> I sell everything by the ton.It is common for this area to sell by the ton.


We do the same here. Started weighing every load this season and made more money. Used to weigh some "average" loads and sell off those weights for most of the loads from that cutting but found that my bales were not as consistent as i thought and I tended to error on the heavy side so as not to short people. Found the extra $5 cost to weigh each load was money well spent and now everyone knows exactly how much hay they are buying with every load. Just wishing I had a scale close by or on the place.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

dbergh said:


> We do the same here. Started weighing every load this season and made more money. Used to weigh some "average" loads and sell off those weights for most of the loads from that cutting but found that my bales were not as consistent as i thought and I tended to error on the heavy side so as not to short people. Found the extra $5 cost to weigh each load was money well spent and now everyone knows exactly how much hay they are buying with every load. Just wishing I had a scale close by or on the place.


Kinda nice here I have about 10 scales I can use.I do business with all of them so that helps.Elevator,Fert co,and a couple feedlots.

One elevator thought they should start charging.I told them they could stick it up their ass.I was a pretty loyal customer to them for yrs.Buying most of my fert,chem and feed from them.That manager is gone now after he about broke the place.

Once in awhile we will take a average of a few loads if we are hauling a lot to one place.If we know the bales are pretty consistant.


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## dbergh (Jun 3, 2010)

swmnhay said:


> Kinda nice here I have about 10 scales I can use.I do business with all of them so that helps.Elevator,Fert co,and a couple feedlots.
> 
> One elevator thought they should start charging.I told them they could stick it up their ass.I was a pretty loyal customer to them for yrs.Buying most of my fert,chem and feed from them.That manager is gone now after he about broke the place.
> 
> Once in awhile we will take a average of a few loads if we are hauling a lot to one place.If we know the bales are pretty consistant.


Our closest scale is in town (4 miles) but we are usually headed that way anyway so it works out pretty well. They are a moving company so I cant really expect any special treatment since they are not Ag related and I don't do any other business with them. Found out we were giving away as much as $100 a load in some cases by assuming bale weights were more consistent than they actually were. Looking into putting in some kind of scale at home but can't make it pencil yet.


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## expensive hobby (Feb 16, 2010)

getting 5-6 bucks locally around here in southern ont


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

dbergh said:


> We do the same here. Started weighing every load this season and made more money. Used to weigh some "average" loads and sell off those weights for most of the loads from that cutting but found that my bales were not as consistent as i thought and I tended to error on the heavy side so as not to short people. Found the extra $5 cost to weigh each load was money well spent and now everyone knows exactly how much hay they are buying with every load. Just wishing I had a scale close by or on the place.


After I put a scale on my 3x3 baler this year I found out how bale weights can vary 50 lbs or more per bale. Like one bale 850lbs the next 800lbs and so on. I would imagine the larger 4x4 bales or the bigger round bales that would vary even more. So say you get more of the heavier bales in one load you would be giving away money if you didn't weigh it.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

I have scale on my baler also.Bales can vary a lot.Different cuttings,how fast you are baleing and moisture .Bales can vary 1300-2000+ lbs.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

swmnhay said:


> I have scale on my baler also.Bales can vary a lot.Different cuttings,how fast you are baleing and moisture .Bales can vary 1300-2000+ lbs.


Are you talking rounds Cy?


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Teslan said:


> Are you talking rounds Cy?


Yea 5x6 rds


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## GawasFarm (Jul 10, 2013)

small squares 3 out of the field 5 from the barn noticed a few are going to 6.

only rounds here mostly 4x5 priced from 20-60 most are 35-40 Isold a bunch off the field delivered 25miles for 70  I was happy and wished for more like that guy. Good thing he is wanting even more next year!


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## GawasFarm (Jul 10, 2013)

Nobody here sells by the ton because scales are hard to come by. The only two I am aware of are at gravel pits.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

swmnhay said:


> Yea 5x6 rds


Just asking because as I'm not that familiar with round balers you can't adjust the tension on them like a square baler? Which is why the weight of of a round varies so different?


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## Bgriffin856 (Nov 13, 2013)

There has to be a scale you could weigh a bale at a time. That might be more efficient/convenient if there isn't any close by.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

Bgriffin856 said:


> There has to be a scale you could weigh a bale at a time. That might be more efficient/convenient if there isn't any close by.


There are. Something like this. http://www-floorscalesdirect-com.netsolads.com/tsm5-33-a_floorscale.aspx. I've thought about these, but the scale on the baler is much more convenient for me so I can keep the bales uniform weights while I am baling. Instead of finding out the weights of a bale a month later.


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## DSLinc1017 (Sep 27, 2009)

bensbales said:


> $5 for a 40# bale of late first, $6.25 a bale for 2nd cut price includes delivery and stacking for 20 mile radius 100 bale min. Hay in quebec, just north of the border( montreal bubble) is going for
> $200 to $250 a ton( 2000 lbs)


Ben,
Do you have a price for out of the barn? How are you calculating your delivery?


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Teslan said:


> Just asking because as I'm not that familiar with round balers you can't adjust the tension on them like a square baler? Which is why the weight of of a round varies so different?


You can adjust most rd balers.Mine has hyd tension besides the springs.Some balers have air pressure.

If windrows are light or travel slower the bale packs more with the more revolutions it takes to get a full bale.

A wetter bale packs tighter.

Finer hay packs tighter then coarse hay


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## sethd11 (Jan 1, 2012)

$5 a small square here. Will be sold out soon.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

looking at craigslist for my area as I am all sold out it appears that grass hay (orchard/brome) is advertised for about $10 for a 55-60lb bale. That is just tarped hay stored outside for the most part. They are advertising 3x3 bales of grass for about $120/bale just tarped. However I bet the real price is $8-9 small bales and about $110-$115 3x3 bales stored inside. As those more expensive advertisements have been advertising the same hay with the same pictures and the same price since June. Plus by now the best stuff is sold out or they are asking to much. I don't see any rounds for sale.


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

It is hard to get more than $35 here for a good roll of grass hay. Bermuda goes for five or ten dollars more.

It is hard for some people to understand that hay stored costs more than hay in the field. The mindset is like, "You had to haul it here anyway for your own use anyway."

Earlier this year I bought 50 4x5 rolls of fertilized Bermuda for $25 per roll in the field. It was an hour away. The guy was happy to sell 50 in one deal.

I only sold 10 rolls this summer, will sell none this winter. At the local price I find it better to keep and feed.


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## Shetland Sheepdog (Mar 31, 2011)

I know a feller that hauls in from out of state, and buys by the ton, then sells by the bale. he counts the bales while loading, and then weighs the load. He figures the cost per bale by doing the math. lets say he has 750 bales that weigh in at 22 ton, and cost $150 per ton. That would be $3,300 or $4.40 per bale. Also the bales would weigh approximately 59 pounds on average. He figures his cost per bale for trucking, handling, profit, etc. using the same methodology. He is also able to tell the customer what the average bale weighs, which is helpful when explaining the price per bale.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Shetland Sheepdog said:


> I know a feller that hauls in from out of state, and buys by the ton, then sells by the bale. he counts the bales while loading, and then weighs the load. He figures the cost per bale by doing the math. lets say he has 750 bales that weigh in at 22 ton, and cost $150 per ton. That would be $3,300 or $4.40 per bale. Also the bales would weigh approximately 59 pounds on average. He figures his cost per bale for trucking, handling, profit, etc. using the same methodology. He is also able to tell the customer what the average bale weighs, which is helpful when explaining the price per bale.


I will do that with the horsey folk.Say weigh 11 rd bales and divide by 11 to get avg weight.Then add the PIA fee on for single bales.Plus delivery charge.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

swmnhay said:


> I Then add the PIA fee on for single bales.


 :lol: :lol: :lol:

Regards, Mike


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## LeadFarmer (May 10, 2011)

I just sold a little over 300 tons of alfalfa hay at $210/ton. Lots of export pressure in my area right now. Neighbor sold about 1200 tons at $185/ton because he was a little too impatient to wait for more brokers to make an offer. I had no less than 8 different buyers/brokers interested in/making offers on my hay. Incredible.

One thing I found interesting was that the export market is currently willing to pay much more than the dairy boys. Highest offer from a dairy was $195/ton.


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## ontario hay man (Jul 18, 2013)

Small squares $5-7 50lbs. Rounds good hay $40-70 800 lbs. Average cow hay $20-40 800lbs.


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## bensbales (Jul 18, 2011)

DSLinc1017 said:


> Ben,
> Do you have a price for out of the barn? How are you calculating your delivery?


I try to keep my at the barn sales to minimum but the 2 people who do come get there hay are only saving $.25 a bale. When i buy and resale hay i try to mark the hay up a $1 to $1.25 a bale for local sales. So in affect i am charging $1 to $1.25 a bale for delivery but only advertising it as $.25.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

bensbales said:


> I try to keep my at the barn sales to minimum but the 2 people who do come get there hay are only saving $.25 a bale. When i buy and resale hay i try to mark the hay up a $1 to $1.25 a bale for local sales. So in affect i am charging $1 to $1.25 a bale for delivery but only advertising it as $.25.


Ben is that even profitable to deliver for $1.25 a bale? I don't know if you have to go get the hay you are buying to resell? If you are then that is even less. Unless you are buying out of one guys barn and delivering straight to another guys barn? How local do you consider local sales. I consider local sales within 75 miles and I try my hardest not to deliver. And if someone wants me to deliver they are really going to pay for it as I don't need to deliver to sell out. I also never broker hay. When I'm out I'm out.


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## weatherman (Dec 5, 2008)

Shetland Sheepdog said:


> I know a feller that hauls in from out of state, and buys by the ton, then sells by the bale. he counts the bales while loading, and then weighs the load. He figures the cost per bale by doing the math. lets say he has 750 bales that weigh in at 22 ton, and cost $150 per ton. That would be $3,300 or $4.40 per bale. Also the bales would weigh approximately 59 pounds on average. He figures his cost per bale for trucking, handling, profit, etc. using the same methodology. He is also able to tell the customer what the average bale weighs, which is helpful when explaining the price per bale.


For those folks that have access to scales, weighing the load to get cost per ton is fair. Takes the guess work out of it. Folks in my area worry about bale price regardless how much a bale weighs.


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## endrow (Dec 15, 2011)

Teslan said:


> Ben is that even profitable to deliver for $1.25 a bale? I don't know if you have to go get the hay you are buying to resell? If you are then that is even less. Unless you are buying out of one guys barn and delivering straight to another guys barn? How local do you consider local sales. I consider local sales within 75 miles and I try my hardest not to deliver. And if someone wants me to deliver they are really going to pay for it as I don't need to deliver to sell out. I also never broker hay. When I'm out I'm out.


Many of my good customers are Amish for me it is all about delivery.


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## dbergh (Jun 3, 2010)

LeadFarmer said:


> I just sold a little over 300 tons of alfalfa hay at $210/ton. Lots of export pressure in my area right now. Neighbor sold about 1200 tons at $185/ton because he was a little too impatient to wait for more brokers to make an offer. I had no less than 8 different buyers/brokers interested in/making offers on my hay. Incredible.
> 
> One thing I found interesting was that the export market is currently willing to pay much more than the dairy boys. Highest offer from a dairy was $195/ton.


Send those Export guys up to Idaho would ya! We need some hay to leave the area this winter. They have totally disappeared this year after buying gobs of hay up here last season.


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## bensbales (Jul 18, 2011)

Teslan said:


> Ben is that even profitable to deliver for $1.25 a bale? I don't know if you have to go get the hay you are buying to resell? If you are then that is even less. Unless you are buying out of one guys barn and delivering straight to another guys barn? How local do you consider local sales. I consider local sales within 75 miles and I try my hardest not to deliver. And if someone wants me to deliver they are really going to pay for it as I don't need to deliver to sell out. I also never broker hay. When I'm out I'm out.


At a 100 bales there isn't much profit but 80% of the time i"m only going 5 miles away. Local for me is 20 mile radius after that it 650 bales per load minimum plus 4.25 a loaded mile. Here in the east you need to deliver to sell out of hay unless you are selling it for $3 to $3.50 a bale. Horsy folk around here must not be as ambitious as they are out west


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## Bgriffin856 (Nov 13, 2013)

No idea what the price is here, but come march we have to keep the doors on the barn shut or people will be knocking the door down wanting to buy hay....


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

bensbales said:


> At a 100 bales there isn't much profit but 80% of the time i"m only going 5 miles away. Local for me is 20 mile radius after that it 650 bales per load minimum plus 4.25 a loaded mile. Here in the east you need to deliver to sell out of hay unless you are selling it for $3 to $3.50 a bale. Horsy folk around here must not be as ambitious as they are out west


I guess with higher priced hay here horsey folks would for the most part rather come and get it themselves then pay to have it delivered. I don't think I have any hay customers that are from 5 miles away or less.


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## panhandle9400 (Jan 17, 2010)

This season everything was put up in 4x4x8's nice wheat straw brought 65.00 per ton, #2 alfalfa bringing 225.00 per ton #1 barn hay is 250.00 per ton .


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