Ingredients
Below normalSoybean hulls price
USDA soybean hulls board price per ton, national fob plant median, with its cost per unit of protein and energy
Data through Aug 17, 2026 · source last checked Aug 27, 2026 · page revised Aug 27, 2026
Cite
- national median across 12 fob plant regions
About this data
- Source
- USDA AMS feedstuffs board
- Series
- Soybean hulls board price
- Basis
- FOB plant preferred, national cross-region median
- Geography
- National
- Unit
- $/ton
- Calculation
- Weekly cross-region median
- Last observation
- Aug 17, 2026
- Update frequency
- Weekly
Now $137/ton (national median across 12 fob plant regions) as of Aug 17, 2026, USDA, up 5% on the week. Protein costs $0.614 per lb of crude protein (173% of soybean meal); energy $0.099 per lb of TDN (94% of corn).
Soybean hulls priced at 94 percent of corn on energy ($0.099 per pound of TDN) after rising 5 percent to $137 a ton, though at 173 percent of soybean meal on protein ($0.614 per pound of crude protein) they remain an expensive protein source. Year over year, the board is up 17.1 percent. Versus the four-year median of $172, hulls sit 20.2 percent lower.
| Period | Current | Prior | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week over week | $137/ton | $130/ton | +5.4% |
| Month over month | $137/ton | $133/ton | +2.8% |
| Year over year | $137/ton | $117/ton | +17.1% |
| vs 4-yr median | $137/ton | $172/ton | -20.2% |
Previous weeks
Week of Aug 10, 2026
Soybean hulls are pricing under corn on energy at $0.094 per pound of TDN, 94 percent of corn. At $130/ton the national median as of Aug 10, hulls have risen 13 percent year-over-year but sit 24.3 percent below the four-year median.
An earlier week
Soybean hulls at $130 a ton this week, flat, priced to beat corn on energy at 94 percent of the grain's cost per pound of TDN. At 170 percent of soybean meal's cost per pound of protein, they are expensive as a protein source. The price sits 24 percent below the four-year median, though month-over-month it has climbed 4 percent since early July, year-over-year 6.6 percent.
An earlier week
Soybean hulls are pricing under corn on energy at 96 percent of the benchmark but well above soybean meal on protein at 165 percent. The ingredient rose 4 percent on the week and is up 8.1 percent year over year, though it sits 18.9 percent below its four-year median. The energy positioning has held through the recent rally.
About Soybean hulls price
Soybean hulls are a fiber source, fed for effective fiber and gut fill more than for nutrients. On a dry-matter basis they run about 12.4% crude protein and 77% TDN, roughly 0.78 Mcal of net energy for lactation per pound of dry matter, at about 90% dry matter as fed. Those figures come from University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension, Composition of Selected Livestock Feeds (FSA3043), from NRC Beef Cattle 1996 + Dairy One. TDN spans 62.6% (NASEM Beef 2016) to ~80% (NRC Beef 1996); 77 is the higher-history midpoint. The leaderboard uses them to convert this week's board price into a cost per pound of protein and per pound of energy, so it can be ranked against corn and soybean meal. Prices are quoted per ton, and the cheapest board price is not the cheapest fed price once freight and moisture are counted (see the FOB-vs-delivered guide). Soybean hulls come off soybeans during crushing for meal and oil, pulled out before or after the crush depending on whether the plant is aiming for 44 or 48 percent protein meal, so hull volume partly reflects that protein-spec choice, not crush volume alone. Supply follows the Midwest's soybean processing capacity. Unlike most fiber sources, soybean hulls digest almost like a grain, making them a popular hay extender for dairy and beef operations when hay prices climb. That same fermentability brings a bloat risk if cattle get too much too fast, and the pelleted form can choke cattle fed it dry without soaking.