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A recent survey showed that the 13 counties in the region need around 13,000 tons of hay. Washington County and it’s neighbor Russell, are among the worst in need.

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Farmers hurting for hay

By CAITLIN SULLIVAN/Staff
Nobody knew how bad the drought was for farmers until last week.
A survey of producers, conducted by county extension agents, found that the 13 counties in Southwest Virginia need some 13,000 tons of hay.
Washington County needed the most. County Extension Agent Phil Blevins said 160 producers who returned surveys in Washington County showed that Washington County farmers are about 3,300 tons short this year.
“There’s a need out there,” Blevins said.
Tony Overbay, a local banker, presented some of the findings to the Board of Supervisors last week in the hopes of garnering $250,000 toward a program to purchase, haul and distribute hay from out of state.
After much discussion, the board denied the request until a more concrete business plan is formed for the program.
“I don’t know what the best solution is,” Blevins said. “[We] have to come up with some kind of cost-share program.”
Blevins said businesses, government and farmers have to get together to work something out.
Blevins said as of a few days ago, the cheapest hay he’d found was in Wisconsin at $130 per ton. He said in Utah it’s at $270 per ton.  Last year, local hay was less than $100, he said.
“Not many farmers will buy $250 a ton for hay,” he said. “Once you get it down to $100 a ton then they’ll start talking to you.”
And that’s exactly what the hay exchange program is trying to do.
Overbay said that distributing hay from the west via rail is looking less and less like a viable option. He said the logistics of different rail lines and where they go would be difficult to reach some parts and trucks would be needed regardless.
He told the Board of Supervisors that it would cost $1.70 per mile to truck hay.
Substituting grain for hay also came up during the Board discussion.
Blevins said a mature cow must have five pounds of hay each day. He said some farmers are turning to grain, but that cows will always need hay in their diet. He estimated that for every two pounds of hay, mature cows can eat about a pound of grain.
Blevins said water shortages are also a problem.
“A lot of people have reduced their herd,” he said. “Their springs, wells have dried up and they’ve ended up hauling water from other sources.”
The Virginia Tobacco Commission set aside $500,000 toward drought relief in the region but no other agency or government body has yet put up money, Overbay said.
The challenge has been to come up with a plan that the Tobacco Commission, Board of Supervisors, extension agents and farmers can all can agree on.
“There’s got to be a formal plan put together,” Overbay said. “The program needs to manage the money, distribute it properly and be accountable.”
He said he recognizes that in order for governments to put up tax dollars toward a program it needs to be sure that the money will be well spent.
Overbay is meeting with the extension agents in the 13 counties on Friday to discuss the next steps.
“It’s been an extremely slow process to pull everyone together and pull money together to help as many as possible,” he said. “No one had any idea that there was that much of a shortage.”
Overbay is hoping to hammer out a final plan in the next two or three weeks and present it again for support.
“The last four weeks have been a nightmare coming up with that plan that’s fair and equitable for everyone,” Overbay said. “We’re trying to help and there’s no assurance that anything will work out.”
Blevins said that if the winter is mild, he doesn’t think the drought will get much worse, “but I’m not going to predict the weather,” he said.
To contact Caitlin Sullivan e-mail or call (276) 628-7101.
What else is being done?
U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, D-9, announced this week that farmers and livestock producers in Southwest Virginia will be eligible to receive crop and feed assistance as a result of a large appropriations bill. According to the press release, the legislation will fund the Crop Disaster Program and the Livestock Compensation Program to provide direct federal payments to qualified farmers in Southwest Virginia through the Farm Service Agency.
Local FSA executive director Ron Hale said as of Sept. 10 his office, serving Washington and Smyth counties, had received 300 applications for livestock relief. According to the payment rate, farmers receive $10.66 per head for beef cattle.