Anyone else concerned about hay for next winter?

[spacefaer]

I bought 60 big bales last autumn and have some left so I reckon they'll last me until this autumn. My farmer supplier has some left over so I have bought another 60 (at last autumn's price) which should last me the same amount of time (particularly since we're planning at least one fewer horse next winter) He stores it for me and I collect two bales at a time.

 

[laura_nash]

Next door quoted someone £60/bale for round bale hay a couple of weeks ago, when they asked him for some hay. He reckons that with carry over and lower yield due to no feriliser he can supply his current customers this year but nobody else.

Wow. I just bought some for €20 (around £16) a bale from a neighbour. He did warn me it won't be that next winter.

He's making a little less as he's growing some grain this year (they used to be self-sufficient for grain for the sheep in the past, dropped it years ago as not worth it, decided to revert to growing their own again this year). He is fertilising as usual despite the cost, just increasing his prices, but some of the farmers he cuts for are cutting back on the fertiliser.

We're thinking of selling one of the cows as well as the two finished steers, so fingers crossed we'll be down from 6 to 3 cattle for next winter. They have bales in a feeder in winter, so get through a lot more hay than my good doer cobs who only have weighed nets, and usually only when in due to awful weather.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I understand that this doesn't make things any better or easier, but hay has been "cheap" for quite awhile. I'm actually surprised how low some of these hay prices are.

 

[Shilasdair]

I have a stack of small bales from 2020 (which was a good hay year) which for various reasons I can't feed to my two horses any more....I feel rich.

 

[scruffyponies]

We have barely fed any in the field this year, so sitting on around 120 bales which will probably see us through next year. Add to this all the logs put away from the stuff that fell in the storms last month, and we are wealthy indeed!

 

[leflynn]

we've been quoted 55-60 for a large round of haylage and our supplier is only making enough for current clients and won't let anyone bulk buy as he knows roughly what people use over the year

 

[dorsetladette]

we've been quoted 55-60 for a large round of haylage and our supplier is only making enough for current clients and won't let anyone bulk buy as he knows roughly what people use over the year

We were paying £45 a bale winter 2020-2021 - I vowed not to pay those prices again hence why we have a stock pile of hay now. That year/winter cost us £1800 in hay alone, we bought a mixture of small and round bales as the availability was pretty much non existent. Winter 2021 -2022 we purchased 26 bales off the farmer (off the field) for £20 each. we are 12 bales into it due to the grass growing continually pretty much all winter. I think we'll need 1 or 2 more while we rest a couple of paddocks and then we should be good for the summer.

I'll see what the farmer is charging again this year and decide on either another trailer load (that how we get the discount) or just enough to top up what we already have. It all really depends on the grass growth and if we need to feed hay over the summer.

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

The DIY yard I was on made 6ft large rectangle bales which we had to buy at £50 a bale, it felt quite expensive then (but the livery was cheap so no-one minded) but perhaps it was actually competitive.

 

[jnb]

I pay £4.50 a small bale (20-22 kg) of superb soft, old meadow hay off unfertilised ground; my hay supplier put his prices up in 2020 after 10 years at £4 a bale.

This is delivered and stacked (where I want it, not where they want to put it!) in fact I don't even need to be there if I don't want to as they're super trustworthy.

I don't begrudge a penny of it, I have had 2 bad bales in the 4 years I have been a customer and this was because the flatbed had a wet patch as they loaded it, they gave me 4 bales in my next delivery in replacement.

I have paid £3-£3.50 a bale from livery yards for utter cr@p and had to smuggle in my own (decent) hay so I'd pay whatever it cost for good stuff.
Hopefully it won't go too manic for everyone

 

[I'm Dun]

I am very lucky to have a good relationship with my hay supplier and I have next winters booked already. But I've gone down from 3 horses to 1 and have only cut my horse budget by a third instead of two third, as the cost of everything is going up and up.

 

[Birker2020]

I pay £35 for a round bale but I am expecting it to go up due to the price of fuel. Its wrapped with that white wrapping, I expect that will go up in price too.

I don't begrudge paying a bit more as its really good hay 99% of the time and my supplier always rolls it down the barn to 'my area' where it is stored and deliver on a 24/48 hr notice.

A big 5ft round bale lasts me approx 2 weeks and 3 days at the rate I feed it. Hoping I can start cutting down or stopping feeding it in the paddock now the grass is coming through nicely.

 

[paddy555]

I've already bought mine from my supplier. It's good hay and barn stored and it has taken the pressure of finding it and paying for it this summer.

I did the same last winter and have done it this year as well. Very comforting to know we can get to this time next year.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

I paid £37 for large bale meadow hay which lasted about 3 weeks between two last winter and I’ve just just bought 20 small bales at £4.70 each for them out on the track. Still experimenting with quantities as we are all new to the system so they have been getting 4 small haynets strung around the track at night but will go down to 2 nets from tonight and I have cut out their nighttime feed as well. I’m going to put money away for winter hay as I can see the big bales going up to £60.

 

[Xmasha]

Just been on preloved, and theres a few people still selling meadow hay for between £3-£4 a bale.

 

[The Xmas Furry]

Just been on preloved, and theres a few people still selling meadow hay for between £3-£4 a bale.

£6.25 at local feed store, not particularly nice stuff either. More expensive at further store.
Geographical distance certainly shows different pricing.

 

[southerncomfort]

Small bales are minimum £4.50 here in the SW and have been for a while

I know, we've been very lucky up here.

What do you think yours will go up to?

 

[Sossigpoker]

I know, we've been very lucky up here.

What do you think yours will go up to?

£6 will probably be the new norm.

 

[maisie06]

Lucky I no longer have a horse! Most of the hay fields around my way have gone for house building, any hay that is being grown locally is £5 - £7 per bale. The UK is not a good place for horses and it will become an elitist sport only for the rich again.

 

[Archangel]

My supplier is stopping after this year due to the cost of everything. He reckons each big bale will need to be £65 each to make any profit at all.

 

[DirectorFury]

I understand that this doesn't make things any better or easier, but hay has been "cheap" for quite awhile. I'm actually surprised how low some of these hay prices are.

Yeah, small bales have been around the £6.50-£7.50 mark here (S Wales) for at least 5 years already. I had no idea people could still get it for as little as £3!
Big round unwrapped hay has been £45 a bale for years too, it’s what I was paying back in 2015 when I was still on DIY. I feel cheated ?.

 

[Nudibranch]

Yesterday I picked up a trailer load for 2.75 a bale. Green, sweet last Summer's meadow hay. It was too cheap not to go and have a look. The guy selling needed rid to make room for this year's cut and said his usual customers don't believe him when he says hay is going to go up this year. More fool them! I'm going back for another 40 if I can find room in the barn....

 

[MotherOfChickens]

Small bale hay is £5 collected for me here-they are big bales and excellent quality so I dont begrudge it. I dont know how people produce it for so little. I could get cheaper round bales (think they were £30 this year) but quality is variable.