October 2007 Archives

An abundance of hay in East Texas this fall has many producers advertising hay for sale online for the first time.  While the Internet can open up new markets for agricultural products, it can also open producers up to scam artists as well.

Just this week I talked to a producer who was contacted via email about some hay he had listed for sale on a web site in another state. They struck up a chain of email conversations back and forth which eventually resulted in the "buyer" sending our producer a cashier's check for $6,000 to deposit in the bank, in exchange for the purchase of 60 rolls of good quality East Texas hay.

Sounds pretty good so far, right? Here's where the scam part came into play.

If you were waiting for some soil moisture to finally plant your winter pasture, this might be the end of the window for the season.  The first real cold front of the season passed through today, signaling the beginning of the end of summer perennial pasture season and ushering in that transition into dormant grass that comes before winter pasture grazing commences.

Last week I spoke with a local producer who had lost 3 heifers to suspected blackleg.  Blackleg is endemic to the area, but very preventable either through vaccination or early treatment with antibiotics.