http://droughtreporter.unl.edu/

v 2.4.3.0

High quality organic and conventional hay were scarce in California where years of drought have cut into hay production. Cattle ranchers and dairy farmers have been hard pressed for the past two years to find suitable hay and have had to look to distant sources for hay. A Tulare County cattle rancher and hay farmer lost his organic certification during the 2013-14 winter because he could not locate organic hay and his own organic oat hay crop yielded next to nothing with the drought preventing any growth. He sold 75 percent of his herd, but still could not find enough organic hay to get his cattle through the winter. Some organic hay growers have opted to grow conventional hay to get better yields, further limiting the organic hay supply. An Imperial County organic hay grower has hay for sale, but Northern California organic dairy farmers were not willing to pay the high cost of the hay and transportation costs. Woodland Daily Democrat (Calif.), Oct. 23, 2014