.jpg)
Hay making equipment has been busy for some weeks due in part to a spate of dry weather favorable for drying newly mowed hay. Harvesting hay is a centuries-old rite of summer revolutionized by mechanization. Escalating costs of replacement equipment, parts, and fuel in recent years prompt me to return this topic.
Iowa State University has a downl oadable spreadsheet tool called the Iowa Equipment Cost Calculator that allows a person to estimate annual ownership and operating costs for a wide range of tractor sizes and implements. I recently used this tool to determine reasonable estimates of costs to cut, rake, and bale hay, focusing on used equipment costs since most farmers in our region run used equipment.
There are many variables that can impact what it cost to cut, rake, and bale hay. Some of these variables include the value of the equipment, the extent to which it is used each year, value of operator’s time, and fuel costs. Based on value of good quality used equipment (not brand new from the dealer) operator time at $20 per hour, and fuel at $5.25 per gallon, the equipment cost calculator estimates the cost of making 1,000 4X5 round bales weighing 800 pounds annually at around $16 per bale. To this must be added the cost of moving the equipment to the location and returning it to the home farm. When we account for all the costs of moving and returning the farm equipment, the cost of making round bales of hay and leaving it in the hay meadow just where it rolls out of the baler is at least $20 per bale. If the operation makes fewer than 1,000 total round bales annually or if it utilizes newer more valuable equipment, these same costs can approach $30 per round bale. This is equipment operating costs alone. It does not address any costs of fertilizer, seed, or land charge. On top of this must be considered that anyone making more the 1,000 round bales per year often has additional equipment to ensure hay making operations can be completed in a timely manner.
A common arrangement is for a landowner to have a local farmer make hay on their hay meadow and the landowner take a share of the total hay harvested. The challenge is that the cost of operating the equipment approaches the current market value of the hay. If the landowner has not contributed anything in the way of fertilizer or lime to improve the hay yield, then the share to which they are entitled probably will not exceed one fifth of the total. If the landowner invests to improve the hay meadow, planting better plant varieties and fertilizing it to support high yields, the share to which the landowner is entitled logically goes up.
The take away is that hay making costs continue to increase. Strategies to modify our livestock production systems to reduce dependency on hay are essential for long run profitability. If you would like a more detailed summary of hay production costs, contact Tom Stanley through the Rockbridge County Extension office at (540) 463-4734 or by email to [email protected].
