Page 10 - MWC 2-2-2023s

The Midwest Cattleman · February 2, 2023 · P10
U.S. HAY PRODUCTION DECLINED 9 PERCENT IN 2022
By James Mitchell, Livestock Marketing Specialist, University of Arkansas

Recently, USDA-NASS and will end in April 2023. ble-digit hay production de- 2% in 2022 to 34.63 million
May 1 hay stocks were tight, clines. Other hay production acres. In the Southeast (AL,
published the 2022 Crop Pro- totaling 16.77 million tons in Texas, the largest hay-pro- AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC,
duction Summary. The report or 7% lower year over year. ducing state, totaled 6.15 SC, TN, VA, WV), hay acre-
includes information about May 1 stocks, combined with million tons, a 40% decline age ranged from a 10% in-
U.S. hay production, acreage, lower 2022 hay production, compared to 2021. Produc- crease in West Virginia to a
and yield. The report also in- put hay supplies at the low- tion declined by 16%, 13%, 5% decline in Arkansas. Mis-
cludes data for December 1 est level on record since the and 10% in Arkansas, Mis- sissippi and Kentucky’s hay
hay stocks. The report splits data began in 1974. The pre- sissippi, and Tennessee, re- acreage both declined by 5%.
the data into two categories, vious record low in hay sup- spectively. USDA’s estimate Texas acreage declined by
alfalfa and other hay. For plies was in 2021. for Arkansas is much better 25%. Declining cattle inven-
producers in the southeast, Other hay production to- than what I would have pre- tories, expensive inputs, and
other hay is the relevant pro- taled 64.84 million tons in dicted last summer. Kentucky high crop prices all likely
duction. 2022, down 9% from the hay production declined 20% contributed to the decline in
The hay marketing year
starts in May and ends the prior year and the largest year over year. In Florida, 2022 hay acreage.
Expensive fertilizer and
annual decline since 2011. hay production increased by
following April. For example, Most Southern Plains and 7%. poor precipitation impacted
the 2022-2023 hay market- Other hay acreage declined yields. U.S. hay yields aver-
ing year began in May 2022 Southeast states had dou-
aged 1.87 tons per acre or 6%
lower year over year. Yields
dropped 9% in Arkansas
(2.00 tons per acre) and Mis-
sissippi (2.00 tons per acre).
Kentucky hay yields aver-
aged 2.20 tons per acre, a
15% decline compared to the
previous year. Oklahoma and
Texas yields averaged 1.25
tons per acre and 1.50 tons
per acre, respectively.

RECORD LOW HAY STOCKS THIS WINTER
By Derrell Peel - Oklahoma State University
Two years of drought have 20.8 percent from the 2012- U.S. and the top-ten states
severely depleted U.S. hay 2021 average December 1 of each hay category. All hay
stocks. The recently released stocks level (Table 1). The production in 2022 was down
December 1 hay stocks from largest hay stocks on Decem- 12.4 percent from the previ-
USDA showed total stocks of ber 1 were in Texas, 25.8 per- ous ten-year average, with
71.9 million tons, 16.4 per- cent below the ten-year aver- alfalfa hay down 13.2 percent
cent below the previous ten- age for the state. Other top and other hay down 11.9 per-
year average and the lowest ten states were down from cent. Hay production in 2022
December 1 stocks on record the ten-year average ranging was the lowest on record in
in the data back to 1973 from Tennessee, down 10.9 data that began in 1974.
(Table 1). percent, to Oklahoma, down Total hay production in plains, mid-south, and east-
Each of the top ten states 32.7 percent (Table 1). the top ten states combined ern seaboard. Kansas and
for hay stocks was down com- Table 1 also presents 2022 represents 43 percent of U.S. Nebraska are the only two
pared to the ten-year average production of All Hay, Alfalfa total hay production and was states that feature in the top
and collectively were down Hay, and Other Hay for the down 18.7 percent compared ten lists for both alfalfa and
to the ten-year average for other hay production.
Table 1. December 1 Hay Stocks, All Hay, Alfalfa Hay, and Other Hay Production, those states. The top ten hay Decreased December 1 hay
Top Ten States and U.S., 2022 and 2012-2021 Average.
production states include stocks means that the cattle
eight of the top ten beef cow industry could face addition-
states along with the number al liquidation this winter and
one dairy cow state, Califor- is particularly vulnerable to
nia and the number three severe winter weather in the
dairy cow state, Idaho. next couple of months. The
The top ten state lists for December storm already will
alfalfa and other hay produc- have taken a chunk out of
tion indicates that alfalfa hay the reported December 1 hay
tends to be more important in stocks. New forage produc-
the northern half of the coun- tion is several months away
try, along with California and in the south and even farther
Arizona, while other hay pro- away in northern regions.
duction is more important
in the central and southern