Hay Harvesting Services Respond to Market Trends (Report‪)‬

Author(s): Steven Blank, UC Davis, Karen Klonsky, UC Davis, Kate Fuller, UC Davis, Steve Orloff, UC Cooperative Extension, Daniel H. Putnam, Department of Plant Sciences The alfalfa hay industry is undergoing a transition in its harvesting technologies that has significant implications for hay growers and consumers. Hay is one of the few agricultural commodities that are "packaged" for the retail market during the initial harvest. Hay buyers prefer some physical attributes over others (Ward 1987) and hay pricing is affected by quality attributes (Hopper et al. 2004), but little attention has been paid to how the alfalfa harvesting process affects hay prices and market structure. We examine how harvesting service costs charged to growers have been influenced by the shift from small to large bales.