I have received numerous calls about calculating the value of corn silage. Since there is no established market, it seems like there are as many ways to calculate the value of corn silage as there are corn silage growers. Below are a few of the methods and approaches I have encountered which may be of benefit for calculating a value. Actual values are related to supply and demand of corn silage, supply and demand of other feed alternatives, and local customs and tradition.

Corn silage value = relative feed value of a known market such as corn grain or baled hay

a) 1/3 to 1/2 value of hay
b) 7 to 8 times the price of a bushel of corn. If the corn silage has already been harvested, then the value may be 10 times the price of a bushel of corn.

Corn silage value = what it would cost to replace or substitute another feed.

a) Calculated using market prices for energy, protein, and digestibility as measured by NEL, crude protein and NDF. Prices of corn, soybean meal, and legume hay can be used to determine market prices for these nutritional components.
b) Calculated using other feed sources such as clover, alfalfa, lespedeza, ryegrass, etc.

Corn silage value = some price agreed upon between grower and buyer which is over and above the cost of production (contract).