The "Quality Tested" Hay Auction was started by the Central Minnesota Forage Council to promote quality testing in the marketplace and to create a marketplace for buyers/sellers of hay. The hay brought to the auction is tested for moisture, protein, and relative feed value (RFV). Also recorded is the price/Ton that the hay sold for.

The full results of the sale for tested hay lots and bedding material are posted at www.stearnsdhialabs.com. A summary of this data is prepared by UM Extension Technical Advisor Dan Martens and can be found on the new MN Crop eNews Hay Auction Information site. The summaries include comparisons to recent and last year's sales.

UM Extension Dairy Specialist Jim Linn uses this data to calculate equations each year that relate prices to RFV tests. This information will be posted on the Hay Auction Information site when they are available.

The Quality Tested Hay Auction is now run by the MidAmerican Auction Company. It is conducted on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month from October through May at the Trucker's Inn Truck Stop just off I-94. Hay lots are to be on site by 10:30 a.m. so samples can be test at the Stearns DHIA Lab. The sale starts at 12:30.