Hay cost per ton in Nevada

Nevada's hay economy is dominated by irrigated alfalfa in the western and north-central valleys, with Fallon, Yerington, Winnemucca, and Lovelock serving as the main trading hubs reported weekly by USDA AMS. The 2025 AMS Nevada hay reports have quoted premium alfalfa in the $210-$285 per ton range FOB stack, with supreme dairy-grade loads trading as high as $300-$320/ton during tight weeks, while grass and meadow hay move $160-$210/ton.

Most Nevada alfalfa fields run 3 cuttings in the north (Elko, Humboldt) and 4 cuttings in the warmer west-central valleys (Lyon, Churchill), per University of Nevada Reno Extension guidance. Annual rainfall across these production zones averages only 4-9 inches, so nearly all tonnage depends on Humboldt, Truckee, Carson, and Walker river irrigation; drought years that cut surface-water allocations historically push stack prices 15-25% above the five-year average reported by USDA NASS.

For a rancher feeding a 1,200 lb dry cow at the standard 2% body-weight intake, roughly 24-25 lb of hay per day is consumed through a 120-day Nevada winter feeding window, or about 1.5 tons per cow per season once 10% feeding waste is included. At the midpoint of the 2025 AMS Nevada grass-hay quote near $185/ton, that pencils to about $278 per cow in hay alone; at premium alfalfa near $250/ton the same cow runs closer to $375 for the winter, which is why most cow-calf operators blend meadow grass with a smaller alfalfa allocation to hold winter feed costs under $300/head.