# California (South) feed prices USDA feedstuffs board prices for California (South), by ingredient and basis _Data through Aug 17, 2026 · source last checked Aug 27, 2026 · page revised Aug 27, 2026_ > 5 ingredients quoted in California (South) as of Aug 17, 2026, up 2% on the week. USDA feedstuffs board. The feed board in California (South) rose 2% for the week ended Aug 17, per the USDA. Soybean meal at $395/ton delivered anchors the five quoted ingredients. Yellow grease, almond hulls, wheat millrun and meat and bone meal are priced FOB plant. ## The numbers | Ingredient | Price | Range | Basis | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Yellow grease | 67.0¢/lb | 66.00-68.0¢/lb | FOB plant | | Almond hulls | $95/ton | $95/ton | FOB plant | | Wheat millrun | $153/ton | 125-$180/ton | FOB plant | | Meat and bone meal | $240/ton | $240/ton | FOB plant | | Soybean meal | $395/ton | 385-$410/ton | Delivered | ## About California (South) feed prices This page lists every feedstuff USDA quotes for the California (South) trade region, cheapest first, with each price's FOB-vs-delivered basis. Compare an ingredient's cost per unit of protein or energy on the [leaderboard](/leaderboard/cheapest-protein) before reading across regions: the cheapest board price is not the cheapest fed price. **What California (South) prices.** USDA's feedstuffs board carries 5 feedstuffs for this region: Yellow grease, Almond hulls, Wheat millrun, Meat and bone meal, Soybean meal. 4 of them are quoted FOB at the plant and 1 delivered, so two rows on the same table are not directly comparable until the freight is accounted for. Across the board the range runs from Yellow grease at the low end to Soybean meal at the high end, which is a spread in dollars per ton and not a ranking by feeding value. **Why a regional price differs from the national one.** A feed ingredient's price at any point is the plant price where it was made plus the cost of getting it to where it is used, so the gap between two regions is mostly a freight story. Regions with processing capacity inside them tend to quote below the national reference because the ton has not travelled; regions that consume more than they produce quote above it by roughly the haul. That difference is the basis, and it widens when trucks tighten, when fuel runs up, or when a local demand source outbids the freight-out market for the same tons. It moves for reasons that have nothing to do with the ingredient itself, which is why a regional quote can rise in a week when the national board is flat. **This market.** Southern California is a demand market at the far end of every freight lane, which is why its quotes tend to sit at the top of the board. ## Common questions ### What feed ingredients does USDA price in California (South)? 5 feedstuffs on the current board: Yellow grease, Almond hulls, Wheat millrun, Meat and bone meal, Soybean meal. The table above carries each one's price, USDA's published range and whether the quote is FOB at the plant or delivered. Which ingredients appear changes as trades are confirmed, so a feedstuff missing this week is usually a thin market rather than a gap in the reporting. ### Why are California (South) feed prices different from the national price? Freight, mostly. A feed ingredient costs the plant price plus the cost of moving it to where it is fed, so a region with processing inside it quotes below the national reference and a region that consumes more than it produces quotes above it by roughly the haul. That gap is the basis, and it moves on trucking capacity, fuel and local demand rather than on anything about the ingredient. ### Does the cheapest price on this board mean the cheapest feed? No, for two reasons. The rows are not all on the same basis, so an FOB plant price and a delivered price are different numbers before freight is settled. And a price per ton says nothing about what the ton delivers: the comparison that matters is cost per unit of protein or energy, which is what the [nutrient-cost leaderboard](/leaderboard/cheapest-protein) computes across the whole feedstuffs menu. ## About this data - Source: USDA AMS feedstuffs board - Series: Feedstuff board prices by ingredient - Basis: FOB plant and delivered, as-fed - Geography: California (South) - Unit: $/ton - Calculation period: Weekly - Last observation: Aug 17, 2026 - Update frequency: Weekly --- Cite: California (South) feed prices from the USDA feedstuffs board, as of Aug 17, 2026. The Ration. https://the-ration.com/region/ca-south Canonical URL: https://the-ration.com/region/ca-south