Feeding livestock doesn't have to break the bank
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DIXONVILLE, Ore. -- With corn prices surging to record highs, prices for soybeans and wheat are also sharply higher. Experts say we can also expect higher prices at the supermarket.
This has led some to wonder, with prices rising rapidly, how has our area been affected?
KPIC News was there on Monday, as a new shipment of grain was delivered to Dixonville Feed.
This comes just as owner Roger O'Conner says, things are getting pricy. "You're looking at cattle prices for feeder cow, which is the majority of what they sell, are dropping from 20-25 cents a pound cheaper than what they got for last year, and that's exclusively the problem with the higher grain prices," he said.
The midwest droughts, while affecting everyone in Douglas County, doesn't mean you can't go on the cheap to feed livestock.
O'Conner says it's not necessarily the high quality hay you need, you can use the low quality. You mix that with molasses, and he says it's going to save you some money down the road.
He says the molasses won't hurt the animal, and it increases the digestibility of lower quality feeds.
As for how long this will play out, O'Connor says the midwest rains will be the telling story next year. "In Douglas County and southern Oregon, we're at the far end of the grain chain," he said. "You know, whatever happens is just compounded because we're so far away from everything."
