HAY demand has eased due to good rains in previously drought-affected parts of the country, but industry representatives say this is the time to plan to rebuild stocks.
Australian Fodder Industry Australia chief executive officer John McKew said in the past month, there was an "almost instant" response to autumn rain with fodder demand easing right back.
He said demand would likely lift again going into winter, with predictions for a cold and wet season.
"Part of problem of the past couple of years is we entered into harvest without carryover," he said.
Mr McKew said this problem would have been repeated again without the rain, particularly on the east coast.
"The fact we had rain has eased demand and we may end up going into harvest with stocks," he said.
"There is not a lot left, but it's still sufficient."
Mr McKew said with a good autumn break, there was the opportunity for the country to start rebuilding national hay stocks.
He said it could be a good drought mitigation strategy to have "another shed or two" as part of planning ahead.
"For people reliant on fodder within our markets, it's no longer just a commodity, but a really important resource," he said.
Mr McKew said reduced demand had led to a drop in price, with the Darling Downs, Qld, region most pronounced - down about 50 per cent for pasture hay. It was one of the first regions to experience a price spike.
"We had quite a big drop a few weeks ago, but that has eased off now," Mr McKew said.
"I would expect some more price corrections in the market, but not to see anything significant at the moment."
Mr McKew said cereal hay was still in relatively short supply, while pasture hay and straw were most prevalent.
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He said there was a chance more hay may come onto the market as vendors may have been holding on to their own stocks as back up.
Lucerne hay is averaging $380 a tonne to $500/t in the South East and $400-$480/t in central SA, which is on par with this time last year, while straw prices have dropped $30-$50 in the SE to $100-$140/t and $20-$30 in central SA to $140-$220/t.
Cereal hay is at $270-$300/t in the SE - down $120-$150 in 12 months - and $220-$320/t in central, down from $300-$350/t.
Murray Bridge hay grower John Talbot said while demand had eased slightly in the past three weeks, he was still being kept very busy.
He said orders were particularly strong from bushfire-affected areas of the Adelaide Hills and the South East, on the back of two drier years and heading into a wet winter.
Mr Talbot sells hay locally as well as interstate, with the Qld market dropping off in recent weeks.
He said many buyers were active now, due to concern the coronavirus pandemic may make deliveries difficult in the coming months.
Mr Talbot said his seed was cleaned and ready for sowing this year, and while the area sown would remain the same, he was using more nitrogen and granulated manure at sowing to boost yields, with the returns on hay justifying the inputs.
He said straw prices had gone down, but there was still need for high-quality, feed-tested hay, particularly from dairies.
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