It’s not yet coming in waves, but domestic and foreign ripples are impacting the U.S. hay market.

Nine researchers were the beneficiaries of the first-ever U.S. Alfalfa Farmer Research Initiative (USAFRI), a farmer-funded investment in alfalfa-related research.

Cargill has reached an agreement to acquire the animal feed business of Richmond, Virginia, based Southern States Cooperative Inc., a move that will help the company better serve its customers in the eastern U.S. The transaction is expected to close within 90 days, subject to customary approvals. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The University of Illinois will be offering dairy and forage classes in the fall 2017 semester.

AGCO, a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment, and The Climate Corporation, a subsidiary of Monsanto Company, announced on July 26 that a definitive agreement has been signed for AGCO to acquire the Precision Planting LLC equipment business.

The American Forage and Grassland Council (AFGC) is pleased to announce industry collaboration with Progressive Forage to designate the international magazine as the official publication of AFGC.

On June 26, John Deere announced that it has purchased Mazzotti, a privately held sprayer manufacturer based in Ravenna, Italy.

U.S. hay producers intend to harvest 53.5 million acres of all hay in 2017, up less than 1 percent from 2016, according to the USDA’s Acreage report.

U.S. alfalfa exports to China continue to climb, reaching 1.29 million metric tons (worth $417 million) in 2016. In terms of volume, this was an increase of 23 percent from 2015. (This is due to lower U.S. prices; however, the total value only increased by 1 percent.)

The 2017 hay market focus has turned from pre-season estimates to in-season harvest information. Late spring breathed some life into prices but, as always, Mother Nature will have the final say on yield and quality.