2017 was an odd year for the farm. It was the year I came to grips with the realization that I needed a full-time source of off-farm income, yet it was also our most profitable year by a large margin. It included what seemed like insurmountable losses from mowed wheat and unsold beef, yet everything worked out in the end. Doom, gloom, and optimism all share place at the table on this small-scale farm.
The big reason we had such a profitable year was that we got out of the pig breeding business. The breeders that we sold off and the few that we butchered provided a nice cash infusion, and with so many less piggy mouths to feed, our feed expense was only $2000 this year. This resulted in a $2500 operating income for the pig business. We also butchered more beeves than ever before, four, and they came in heavier than I expected, averaging more than 430 lbs. I had over-purchased hay in previous years, so I didn't need to buy any cattle feed at all, resulting in about $1500 of operating income from each steer. I held back one steer that was ready to be butchered due to lack of sales, which could have theoretically boosted our income even more. The beef business has been the most successful source of income for us after 6 years of experimentation, but it is still very contingent on being able to sell what we produce at the price we need to pay ourselves a fair wage. It is also somewhat limited by the difficulty in dealing with custom-exempt butchering. I could see growing the beef business to 10-15 head per year which could net us between $10,000 to $25,000, but finding 30-50 customers would be a major difficulty for us. Even with that income, I'd still need to work part or full-time off the farm.
Even though our wheat was mowed and did not re-grow with much vigor, the offending party paid us $1200 for the loss which mostly covered our expenses and allowed the wheat experiment to be a financial wash. Our EQIP fencing/manure pad grant was a wash as well, although it should start to pay out for us in 2018. We had the usual small expenses as well, but we managed to keep most of our expenses to a minimum and ended up with a net profit of $7,789. I probably averaged about 15 hours/week on the farm over the course of the year, which works out to a little less than $10/hour. Not bad, but also still nowhere near my goal of $20/hour.
It will be interesting to see where the next few years take us and the farm. I'm keeping an open mind, and looking for opportunities that allow me to build on the skills that I've developed over the last 6 years. My hunch is that it will involve more collaboration and less solo-farming as I've definitely learned I can't do it all on my own!
The big reason we had such a profitable year was that we got out of the pig breeding business. The breeders that we sold off and the few that we butchered provided a nice cash infusion, and with so many less piggy mouths to feed, our feed expense was only $2000 this year. This resulted in a $2500 operating income for the pig business. We also butchered more beeves than ever before, four, and they came in heavier than I expected, averaging more than 430 lbs. I had over-purchased hay in previous years, so I didn't need to buy any cattle feed at all, resulting in about $1500 of operating income from each steer. I held back one steer that was ready to be butchered due to lack of sales, which could have theoretically boosted our income even more. The beef business has been the most successful source of income for us after 6 years of experimentation, but it is still very contingent on being able to sell what we produce at the price we need to pay ourselves a fair wage. It is also somewhat limited by the difficulty in dealing with custom-exempt butchering. I could see growing the beef business to 10-15 head per year which could net us between $10,000 to $25,000, but finding 30-50 customers would be a major difficulty for us. Even with that income, I'd still need to work part or full-time off the farm.
Even though our wheat was mowed and did not re-grow with much vigor, the offending party paid us $1200 for the loss which mostly covered our expenses and allowed the wheat experiment to be a financial wash. Our EQIP fencing/manure pad grant was a wash as well, although it should start to pay out for us in 2018. We had the usual small expenses as well, but we managed to keep most of our expenses to a minimum and ended up with a net profit of $7,789. I probably averaged about 15 hours/week on the farm over the course of the year, which works out to a little less than $10/hour. Not bad, but also still nowhere near my goal of $20/hour.
It will be interesting to see where the next few years take us and the farm. I'm keeping an open mind, and looking for opportunities that allow me to build on the skills that I've developed over the last 6 years. My hunch is that it will involve more collaboration and less solo-farming as I've definitely learned I can't do it all on my own!
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