After years of drought, Nebraska hay producers faced a new challenge in 2025: too much rain. This high-moisture hay raises new questions about winter feeding strategies.

Decades of genetic innovation meet farmer- and rancher-tested flexibility in alfalfa systems built for yield, quality and climate resilience.

What was once "grunt work" is now a critical piece of the puzzle, handled by a team that knows its impact.

Farmers in different western U.S. regions grow different types of alfalfa seeds to meet the needs of those regions and climates.

During the winter months when fresh forage on pastures is unavailable to most cow-calf producers, they typically turn to feeding one low-quality forage with a protein supplement. In Nebraska and other states where corn is a commonly grown commodity crop, many producers use grazing cornstalks as their low-quality forage source.

As the calendar has turned to autumn and the hay harvest season continues in full swing across the country, forage analysis labs expect to be hit by a tidal wave of samples from clients.

Cows that consume feed contaminated with mycotoxins – which include natural toxins made by various species of molds – may suffer a host of various metabolic disruptions that lead to a loss of milk production, hormonal imbalance and reduced reproductive performance. 

Except for forage producers using hay analyses for marketing purposes, the real advantage of hay testing is not simply getting the results, but using those results to make meaningful decisions and make the hay feeding period more efficient.