Hay Auction Prices Reach New Highs!
September 2021
In economics, the simplest you can get is supply and demand. These two items will determine the price for nearly any commodity, and the hay market is no different.
Our Steffes team in Litchfield, MN hosts Quality Tested Hay Auctions once a month in June, July, and August, and the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month September through May. Our forage auctions provide an excellent opportunity for both sellers and buyers. At these events, you will find an array of high-quality alfalfa, grass, and straw being sold to a wide audience of eager buyers bidding on forage grown all over the Midwest and Canada. Prior to being sold, all forage is tested on-site by Dairyland Laboratories the morning of the auction. This ensures your top-quality hay is recognized as such and that bidders bid with the utmost confidence because they truly know what they are getting.
In the 14 years of Steffes hosting hay auctions, the prices seen recently have been an anomaly. July 2021 brought prices as high as $340/ton, comparing to averages of around $150/ton in the same months during an average year. This price increase can be attributed to the drought-like conditions much of the Midwest experienced over the summer months. The fear of potential supply shortages of hay caused prices to skyrocket to levels never seen before. Following this peak, rains fell across some of the region’s hardest-hit areas, increasing the supply of hay and available forage. Current prices are averaging between $175-$200/ton, which is still higher than previous years.
“I am anticipating that we have a 30-day window in front of us that will be a buyers’ market, and then following harvest, expect to see prices to start climbing again,” says Steffes Representative Randy Kath. There are multiple opportunities to buy and sell hay through the end of the year. The dates for our upcoming hay auctions are:
To view full results from past hay auctions, click here.
For more information about Steffes Group’s Quality Tested Hay Auctions, contact Steffes Representative Randy Kath at 320.693.9371 or 701.429.8894
