Australia Weather News

A hay contractor in the New South Wales Hunter Valley says the region is drier than he has seen it in over a decade, and that without good rainfall leading into winter, hay supplies could run low.

Throughout summer, temperatures have regularly pushed above 40 degrees Celsius in parts of the Hunter, while the threat of bushfire has also been high.

The landscape inland of the coast quickly melds into a vista of baked, brown hills with every ridge, line and crack, which was once covered under thick green pastures, now on show.

Beau Blundell, who is based at Gresford and supplies hay predominantly to thoroughbred studs around the Hunter, Sydney, and Central Coast said his farm was desperate for rain, as was most of the Hunter Valley farmers.

"We're a bit fortunate here that we do get western rain and coastal rain, so we don't generally fall into seriously dry times as a general rule," he said.

"[But] I've been here for about 11 years, and this is the driest I've certainly seen it."

Hay supplies impacted by central west NSW floods

Mr Blundell said without decent rainfall in the coming weeks, farmers around the Hunter Valley would begin to stock up on hay.

"I think there's obviously some forward thinking going on now as to what they do over winter, and they'll probably start stocking up fairly soon," he said.

"If they don't get a break, I think they'll start buying and filling sheds."

In September 2016, the NSW central west was ravaged by flooding which wiped out pastures.

Mr Blundell said this was having a flow-on effect on hay supplies.

"Hay supplies are getting, I wouldn't suggest low, but I think they certainly will coming into winter time," he said.

"With the Forbes floods last year, there's certainly not the surplus of hay there would've been in the central west.

"I think it's certainly going to get in short supply in the coming months."

Without rain, 'trying times' on the horizon for farmers

Mr Blundell said hay for thoroughbreds was fetching up to $12 per bale at present — a price which could rise going into winter.

He said his racing clients required hay year-round.

"Where they wouldn't require it normally is with their breed mares, and that's where we'll probably see much more numbers going out in hay stocks over the coming time.

"As they need more, we'll try and support them as much as we can and keep our prices low, given they'll be buying greater numbers in volume."

Mr Blundell said there was a huge amount at stake if rain did not fall across the region.

"I don't think there'll be a lot of horses being sold — the value in racing stock would far exceed the value of feed that's going to outweigh it," he said.

He said the cattle market was a different situation.

"If we stay dry, there will be some good numbers of cattle in the yards, and I guess that will have a fairly large effect on cattle prices too.

"Obviously we feel very heavily for farmers; we're farmers too.

"This next period will be a trying time for many."

ABC