Farmers and ranchers faced droughts and wildfires recently, and now they are dealing with a hay shortage.
"If you think about in just the Mora County area, there's probably – according to the Ag census – over 16,000 head of livestock in that area," Jeff Witte, New Mexico secretary of agriculture, told KOB 4. "We figure that the forage needs in the area amount to about $200,000 a week, and so if you just multiply that from April through now."
The New Mexico Department of Agriculture created a website to connect producers with people who need hay. The organization is one of several groups working to help people impacted by the wildfires. The process to recover the lost grasslands will be long, even if New Mexico gets a good rainy season.
"In the areas of the heavy burn scars, we're going to see impacts for several years," Witte said. "It takes several years to bring back some of the lands that have a heavy burn scar."
Witte said he is impressed by assistance from the state, KOB 4 reported. But, he feels for the farmers and ranchers who are affected.
"Anybody who can have their livelihood depend on a little seed, the soil, and hope for rain and moisture, and do that their whole life, you know they're tough people," Witte said. "Personally, it's heartbreaking," he said. "I grew up in the north, in northern New Mexico, and so I understand the custom, the culture, and the people. It's just ... one of those things that you want to help [and] you just can't help enough."
