http://droughtreporter.unl.edu/

v 2.4.3.0

Green up in Montana to Colorado and Nebraska was muted due to dry conditions with little forage growth seen in many areas. Rain is needed to keep these rangelands green. Conditions this May are the worst in at least 35 years. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, this is the highest Drought Severity and Coverage Index value at 183 out of 500, for the highest DSCI value in mid-May dating back to 2000. The USDA ranked pasture and range conditions starting in May as having the highest percentage of poor to very poor conditions since 1995. As of May 1, hay stocks were: • 15.1 percent below the 2012-2021 average for the country • Down 21.7 percent from the ten-year average in the 17 western states • For the ten western states, down more than 30 percent from the ten-year average Hay prices are forecast to hit record levels in 2022, and alfalfa prices will also be high. With pasture and rangeland in poor condition, and hay being expensive, rates of beef cow slaughter were exceptionally high at 4.2% of the Jan. 1, 2022 beef cow herd total, which was above the average culling percentage of the first four months of the year of 3.0% from 1986 through 2021. Drovers Cattle Network (Lenexa, Kan.), May 23, 2022