Fodder prices have soared to new heights for this time of year with hay and straw prices up by as much as £25 and £20 per tonne, respectively, ex-farm.

With most farmers having used up all reserves during the long, harsh winter which extended well into the spring, the pressure is on to replace these stocks.

However, with hay and straw crops likely to be well down on the year due to the weather, livestock farmers who rely on bought in supplies, will have to dig deep in the coming months.

“It’s going to be a very expensive winter for livestock farmers,” Alistair Hodnett, director of the Forfar-based fodder merchants John Guthrie Ltd, told The Scottish Farmer.

“All the fodder producing areas have been hit – either by a long, cold dry spring which curtailed growth early on, and then a drought, so supplies just aren’t there. It looks like there’s going to be a shortage on the Continent too due to drought conditions, so it’s unlikely we’ll be able to import additional stocks,” added Mr Hodnett.

He pointed out that hay is currently selling at £25 per bale, or £100 per tonne ex farm, compared to £75 per tonne this time last year. Silage traded locally is making £12 per bale.

The short straw length caused by the poor weather is also boosting prices. Normally straw length is about 18inches, but it’s a good four inches shorter this year at 12-14inches. Not suprisingly, barley straw is selling at £65 per tonne ex-farm whereas last year the same straw was making £45 per tonne.

Prices in the bout are about £30 per tonne. Wheat straw prices are on a par with barley straw, and more people are baling rape straw, which at present is selling for £50 per tonne, ex farm, he said.

Soaring prices for wheat are also increasing the demand for draff, which in Aberdeenshire is trading at £20 per tonne delivered: £22 per tonne in Angus and £23 per tonne in Perthshire.

Worse still, Mr Hodnett believes prices are likely to rise further as the year progresses.

“Buyers have been hanging back in the hope that prices will fall but they’re unlikely to get any cheaper because the supplies just aren’t there and we can’t make anymore now,” he said.