Shortage trend sparks list of hay producers

MAT-SU — If you grew hay while the sun shone on the Mat-Su Valley this past summer, there’s a district agricultural agent looking for you.

There could be horse and other livestock owners searching for growers as well. A new hay survey could bring these growers and buyers together.

Alaska’s short growing season brings with it a traditional winter shortage of nutritious hay to sustain livestock, Cooperative Extension Service Agent Stephen C Brown said. Brown is leading an effort to update the extension’s list of hay producers for those who need the precious commodity for their livestock.

“Regardless of what our year is like, Alaska is always short of hay,” Brown said.

In addition to concerns over how much hay may be available this winter, quality is also an issue, Brown said. Some types of Alaska-grown hay are not of good quality.

“I get really worried,” he said. “All it takes is one bad [growing] season.”

Last year was one of those seasons, and Brown remembers some livestock owners giving animals to homes where new owners promised to keep them fed.

“We’re trying to ascertain just where we’re at with hay,” Brown said about the supply for this winter. “We’re always short. Lack of hay keeps a lot of people from owning horses.”

Owners of horses and other farm animals have been lining up supplies to get them through the winter. One of the places they go is Mike Presley’s Budget Feed in Palmer, where a 50-pound bale of hay sells for between $12.50 and $13.50.

Presley said he has no specific information about how the overall hay harvest went, but he sees a trend.

“It’s shaping up to be a tight year for hay products of the quality horse owners are used to,” he said.

Since there’s no substitute for hay, Presley said if things get tight, other options for horse owners may be costly. “About the only thing they can do is use expensive hay brought in from Outside or buy hay pellets or hay cubes,” he said.

Hay from Montana, Alberta and Northern Idaho is brought here by truck when demand is high, Presley said. Washington and Oregon hay generally arrives by water.

“Typically, Alaska farmers do not profiteer,” Presley said about local hay growers. He blames any shortage that may occur on two or three years of unfavorable weather. “And no, you can’t blame global warming.”

The dairy industry typically provides for itself, Presley said.

Dairy farmer Wayne Brost said 2007 was a tough year overall for hay production on his Point MacKenzie area land. Although his hay got wet when rains came, the hay was rolled into bales of between 1,200 and 1,400 pounds each. Even if the weather’s wet, Brost said that hay could still be made into silage to feed cows. Silage is a high-moisture, fermented feed made usually of grass products, which is fed to sheep and cows.

The huge rolls go into a machine that chops them up with other ingredients, like barley and soy pellets, for Brost to create his own nutritious feed recipe. The closed bales continue to ferment until opened, and Brost said the result is a mix that is good for livestock.

“It’s like if you bag your lawn clippings,” Brost said. “They’ll ferment, but they won’t spoil.”

Once opened, however, the bales must be used.

Brost said if he has surplus hay, he will sell to other animal owners.

“I have a few people using it for horses,” he said.

Hay growers who would like their farm listed in the Cooperative Extension hay survey should contact Brown at 745-3369. The list will be made available to the public. Growers should provide contact information, the variety of hay produced, whether the hay had a nutrient analysis, the type and weight of bales and whether the producer delivers hay. The survey will be published Nov. 23.

Contact John R. Moses at john.moses@frontiersman.com or call 352-2270.