The Farm Tender Hay Report - Dry in Qld and for NSW Farmers it's about not getting caught out again...

Dry in Qld and for NSW Farmers it's about not getting caught out again...

For the fortnight up to the 15th of December 2020.

Firstly to those that have taken the time to read the Hay Report, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a great New Year. We will do our last report for 2020 on the 30th of December. 

The Hay Trucks are starting to move more readily in Queensland as areas move back into dry or drought mode. We can only hope it's short-lived with the compensation is that Cattle prices are high, despite some price drops in the last few weeks.

Demand has lifted in these areas, and we are also starting to see Dairy Farmers becoming more interested in sourcing Hay and Silage. Quality is hard to come by, and those looking for Hay or Silage can now get something pretty local.

An interesting ABC article that spoke of many NSW Farmers who were not going to get caught again buying expensive Fodder from the South as they did in the last drought period. They have decided to take matters into their own hands, make the Fodder themselves and store it with the next drought in mind. This sort of stockpile will affect the market when the next dry period arrives.

It confirmed what we (here at Farm Tender) were witnessing throughout the year with the numbers of NSW Farmers that bought Balers, Mower Conditioners and Hay Rakes, with this very thing in mind.

Any rain-affected test results have NDF percentages in the 60's and 70s. This quality of Hay is hard to move and may prove hard to shift for some time yet. But we all know that things in Ag change quickly.

The saving grace for Hay season 2020 is that Hay and Silage yields have been pretty good, so less gound covered for more quantity than in past seasons.

The demand for Hay dried up at the end of February and looking back through the records we were super flat out facilitating Hay and Silage at this time of the year in 2019. 

What's happened to Hay prices over the last fortnight?

Cereal Hay is tough to move; therefore, it's hard to get a handle on prices. For the better stuff it would be $150/mt max as outlined in this decent parcel just listed.

New-season Vetch Hay prices are dependant on quality. $200/mt or better for the more favourable testing stuff, and work your way down in price for the lesser quality stuff. 

Nearly all of the Straw that is moving is in the North. One sale in Northern NSW was at $45/bale for a parcel with bale weights of 550kg.

We go around the grounds to see what our Farm Tender Sales people have to say:

Paul Grayling - Mallee, Vic based

Paul said - We are still getting calls from buyers chasing top quality Hay, finding it is difficult. It will be interesting to see if the amount of Grain around changes anything re demand, as some might chase higher Proteins that way. Weather damaged Hay is about and not really moving, Pricing is the key, but everything does have its tipping point though. A Safe and Merry Christmas to all.

Shane Ruyg - Queensland based

Shane said - Again, not huge interest in the Hay job apart from some parcels of Vetch Hay into the Cattle and Dairy job. Expecting to see more parcels of Hay come on the market after Harvest and Christmas has passed. Hearing from a client of mine in the Riverina that parts of QLD are still dry and there has been trucks heading that way recently.

Mike Pickard - Darling Downs, Qld based

Mike said - After a sustained period of hot weather, some areas of Queensland are slipping back into drought conditions and these areas are requiring Hay. We have sent 15 Road Train loads into Western Queensland in the last 7 to 10 days. Most of the Hay has been sourced out of New South Wales and locally in Queensland. They are looking at quality Hay with good feed Tests and bale weights of 600 kg plus. 

Jackie Elliott - South West ,Vic based

Jackie said - Continually having discussions with sellers about Hay prices and movements. With not much to report or refer to when pricing in the current market. If you are looking at listing Hay for sale, I recommend providing feed tests. For those buying, without this information, they might just scroll on past.

Talk soon

Dwain Duxson - Farm Tender & DelayPay

For more information on selling or buying Hay contact the following:

Paul Grayling – 0447 069 082 or paulg@farmtender.com.au

Shane Ruyg – 0447 922 604 or shaner@farmtender.com.au

Mike Pickard – 0429 677 636 or mikep@farmtender.com.au

Jackie Elliott - 0400 808 550 or jackiee@farmtender.com.au

Murray Jones (WA only) - 0474 808 160 or murrayj@farmtender.com.au

Or 1300 Farming (1300 327 646)

Need to buy something? Try DelayPay

Payment terms for buyers and a spendable credit limit in 24 hours, go to www.delaypay.com.au. If you are keen to know more ring Kelsey 0409 117 730 or Dwain 0427 011 900

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