Hay Production and Prices

Jan 25, 2022

By James Mitchell

Last week USDA-NASS published their 2021 Crop Production Summary. The report includes information about U.S. hay production and December 1 hay stocks. USDA splits hay data into two categories, alfalfa and all other hay. All other hay is the relevant category for the Southeast.

Southeast

All other hay production totaled 70.951 million tons in 2021, down 3.8% from the prior year. Several southern states had year-over-year declines in hay production. All other hay production declined 2.3%, 2.7%, and 16.1% in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi. Alabama hay production declined 6.7% year-over-year. All other hay production increased 6.7% in Kentucky.

Smaller 2021 hay production followed a decline in harvested acres. Nationally, harvested acres for the other hay category declined by 1.4%. In the Southeast (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA, WV), harvested acreage decreased 4.2% year-over-year. Harvested acreage in Arkansas and Mississippi declined 7.1% and 4.6%, respectively. Kentucky harvested acreage declined 1.5%.

As of December 1, 2021, hay stocks totaled 79.016 million tons, down 6.0% from the previous year. December 1 hay stocks are the lowest since 2012. In the Southeast, December 1 hay stocks declined 4.3%. December 1 hay stocks dropped 5.6% and 4.8% in Arkansas and Mississippi, respectively. Kentucky hay stocks declined 2.0%.

All else equal, smaller production and tighter stocks mean higher prices. The most recent data for November has hay prices averaging $147/ton or 8.9% higher year-over-year. Hay prices will continue to increase through the winter. Hay prices in February and March typically average 1.4% and 3.6% above the annual price. This winter, we could see hay prices average $150-$160/ton.

Source : osu.edu

Video: Sweetener Effects on Gut Health - Dr. Kwangwook Kim

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Kwangwook Kim, Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, discusses the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in nursery pig diets. He explains how sucralose and neotame influence feed intake, gut health, metabolism, and the frequency of diarrhea compared to antibiotics. The conversation highlights mechanisms beyond palatability, including hormone signaling and nutrient transport. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Receptors responsible for sweet taste are present not only in the mouth but also along the intestinal tract.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Kwangwook Kim / kwangwook-kim is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, specializing in swine nutrition and feed additives under disease challenge models. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from the University of California, Davis, where he focused on intestinal health and metabolic responses in pigs. His research evaluates alternatives to antibiotics, targeting gut health and performance in nursery pigs.