Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Growing Small Grains for CSA and Market

market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Market Farming

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: SaladG AT aol.com
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Growing Small Grains for CSA and Market
  • Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2011 14:56:11 EST

Bill I think I qualify as old enough to comment on this.  Agriculture has changed so much since we started in 1963 that it is really hard to get our hands around it.  We were on the process of getting large as Sect Butt's said we were supposed to do then in 1979 the whole world structure of agriculture came crashing down, with 10 cent hogs, and land , machinery, and livestock went to 15% of value.  Land was worth 3500 an acre went to 750 an acre in less than 6 months.  At the time we had 3000 head of hogs on hand which was an actual sale value of 40 cent a  pound but the bank on our financial statement wouldn't accept any cash value on any property, he valued everything at a rough value of 25% of current cash.  In turn our net worth went from 300,000 to less than a total to 50,000 including the land.  This was less value than when we started farming. It was only a paper value and it was the way bankers strangled out all the older farmers.  Didn't work for all of us, a small precentage survived the bankers takeover of agriculture.
 
Today is really a different world out there, all our neighbors have a hard time trying to figure out which Corp to switch all their money around so they don't have to pay any taxes on their incomes, they sure complain when we landowners raise the cash rent to 400 or 500 and acre. 
 
I do raise some small grain every year and cannot find anyone any more to do any custom work.  Last year I had 10 acres of oats, 10 acres of wheat, and 25 acres of Hay.  I can find guys to bale hay but that's it they will not drive a combine to our farm for $30 an acre to cut crops, I offered a guy $50 an acre and he told me it wasn't worth resetting his combine to only do 20 acres.  We need to be doing our own small grain but the cost of harvesting equipment is prohibitive.  I don't like the grain I have to get to feed my livestock, it usually is buggy, moldy, or really bad condition.  Some of the corn that I had to use this last year had over 50% damage, and I had to pay full price, this is a rip off.
 
Bill none of the old guy's around here are even around anymore, they sold out to the big guys and left and went south, they got tired of watching what is going on in this part of the country.
 
Phil from Iowa
www.timberridgelamb.com



Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page