Small Farm Profits---How to Decide your goals

[FarmerChick]

here is a good link

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/html/ec/ec1529/


this site just helps you determine what might be in your future for small farming business. It is from Oregon Small farms info but it has much value info in it.....take a quick read on it and this way you can understand what a small farm requires.

 

[FarmerChick]

You are far better off with 5 acres of great soil than 50 acres of mediocre soils. However, you might need a certain critical acreage to produce some crops economically. For example, growing grain on less than 200 acres would not support the purchase of even a used combine. While garlic can be produced on small plots (3 /4 acre or less) using hand labor and a rototiller, 5 acres probably is needed to justify a fully mechanical operation.



****I copied this from the site. It is so true. THE SOIL is the start. Good soil, great results. So many do not understand this simple part.

Someone could be farming 10 acres, and someone farming 1 acre with wonderful amended soil can produce more....go figure right..LOL


just a thought to throw out there!!

 

[Beekissed]

The most important resource listing I found on that site regarding soil and how to make more per acre was this one:

You Can Farm: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Start and Succeed in a Farming Enterprise. 1998. Joel Salatin (Polyface, Inc).

His book tells you how, without spending tons of money on soil amendments, you can improve the soil you have, in a natural way. His farming mode is more geared towards people who can market their produce and meats to well-populated urban areas than for us podunk folks, but I think most of your live pretty close to bigger towns, don't you?

Where I live, the market for healthier foods is not viable....no nice restuarants, no specialty foods stores, no rich or health conscious folks live here...at least not enough to support his kind of farming.

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

Thank you for the link, FC. I'm gonna bookmark it so I can share it with DH.

 

[FarmerChick]

at least not enough to support his kind of farming.

*****
Bee there is no "this type of farming" in this link......it shows a family the realities of farming a small business. Whether 1 acre or 500 it gives great advice on what is real in this business....that is all.

even in a podunk town, people need to eat.....and there is a market for a 1 acre farm anywhere in this land. someone will buy your produce. If there isn't a market, then create one.

everyone who doesn't have a decent farmer market near them and truly wants to sell and make money off their land, one OPTION is to to call the county they live in....counties should have money available for sponsored farmer markets and such.....it needs people to get any movement started...alot of work but in the end you benefit if it is the way you want to try to sell and make money.

but I got off subject....LOL

this is straight forward info on what farming business is like...there is alot to consider and this is just good farm business info.

Nothing says you need to live by this link, just read and pick out what might help the person reading...that is all.

 

[Beekissed]

FC, I meant the type of farming that Joel Salatin uses! I want to copy some of his methods, but I doubt I would have the marketing capabilities for his specialty foods~grass-fed beef, chickens, pigs, rabbits~as I don't have a target market in my area.

Just regular farming, as described in this link? Yeah, there's always a market for commercial methods of producing food....you know, till, plant, fertilize, grow~or feed grains to quickly finish off livestock. People always need food.

Can we produce it as cheaply as the commercial farmers? Probably not.

Can we charge more than them? If we have a target market of people who want to support local farmers, like home grown produce~organic or not, and will buy animals from local meat suppliers.

I'm just saying that I don't have a target market like that in my area. You all probaby do, as you live closer to an urban population that cannot grow for themselves, are more informed about healthy choices in foods, and have the money to pay a little more than Wal-mart's prices.

I have to sell to tourists during tourists season and even that is iffy...how many tourists on vacation are going to stop in the middle of it and buy perishable produce and meats?

 

[FarmerChick]

FC, I meant the type of farming that Joel Salatin uses!


***I gotcha.


one thing though, learning to maximize anything we do on our acerage is a great thing to learn. Like you doing a rotation method with animals. Most bang for our buck on our property!!

yea marketing is the worst!!!! if all I had to do was grow it and nothing else...I would love this business..HA HA HA

getting it sold and gone is always the hard part. marketing stinks..LOL

everyone always has great ideas to make money and be more sufficient and such, then it comes to the final "how do I get it to market"!!!

UGH

 

[Beekissed]

Yeah, Mr. Salatin advises that you never grow anything unless you are sure of your market. But, I'm thinking, how do you know you will have a market unless the word goes around that you have something worth buying?

Even he started out small and took his meats and eggs around to the fancy restuarants and offered samples. Apparently he grew it before he knew they would buy it!

 

[Acre of Blessings]

That is some great information, but we only have 1 acre and we have a garden for us and 1/2 of the acre is fenced in for animals.

Hubby is gonna get me a milk cow if I get rid of the goats.

I can get a lot more used form 1 cow that I can 3 goats.

 

[prairiegirl]

Thanks for the link. I like the simple outline of information offered.
We have so much to learn with all of this.

Our biggest stumbling block is pricing.
Any tips on that FarmerChick?