What's the most profitable way make cash, farming

[midwest]

What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

I have just purchased a farm with 120 acres in Missouri. Most of it is in CRP now, but will be out in 2007-2008 seasons. I grew up on a farm, but did not know what actually made the money. Almost all of the land is tillable and has very good soil characteristics. I was just hoping that someone on here could give me some suggestions on how to make some hard earned money.

P.s. It does have several out buildings and is set up to run livestock on 35 acres of fenced ground.

 

[Slamfire]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Find a local market for something nobody else produces. Some grains sell well to folks into organic eating. Do not choose a crop before you find the market though. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[Charolais]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Don't invest in anything that eats while you sleep!!! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Just kidding.

Check with your extension agent. They might have some numbers and ideas.

 

[hobbyfarm]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

midwest,
Welcome to TBN, very important business to take care of here is to fill out your member profile. It give fellow members "more teeth" to their advice. Otherwise it's just general advice.
Goood luck with your farming adventure.

My uncle (he's a farmer/rancher) once told me "How do you make a million dollars farming?"
Answer: "Start with a billion dollars." /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Soundguy]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Rent the land out to an existing farmer.. get paid up front.. get a job.. at the end of the year you will have worked less, and probably made more money than the farmer renting your land... /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif Sad facts.. but more and more true every day.

Soundguy

 

[RickB]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

There are hundreds of guys out there farming a thousand acres for the love of it and working a full time job out of necessity.

 

[Indydirtfarmer]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

This is what's known as a loaded question.....

I have a couple business's, work a day job, AND consider myself a "full-time farmer". I currently have in production, about 1400 acres. (Approx. 500 corn, 500 soybeans, 150 hay, and the rest woods or unused pasture)

My family has farmed since 1816.

Long story short, this ain't my first rodeo.....

Doing a corn/soybean/wheat rotation will average out at around a paultry $45 to $60 an acre PROFIT when all is said and done. (averaged over the last 10 years or so) You won't get rich without doing THOUSANDS of acres. In fact, the smaller your operation is, the LOWER those numbers will go....

Hay CAN make more money, but it isn't a lock..... I do a great bit of business with horse people in my area. I manage to grow a good grade of hay. It sells for $4(+) a bale. With fertilizer/pesticide/fuel/labor/equipment/storage cost figured in, I make about $160 an acre on average. (But don't think you can do that on hundreds or thousands of acres.... It's taken me 20 years of "marketing" my product to reach the level of sales I have now)

There's a number of "unconventional" farming practices out there. I have a friend that is part of a family run operation that has U-Pick-It veggie/strawberry, a vineyard, a winery, and a restaraunt. They bag some serious cash, but have a VERY serious investment (of both TIME and money)

Another friend runs an almond operation in norther California. He knocks down some big bucks, but he has spent most of his life getting to the point where he's at now. Literally MILLIONS invested.

You want to know how a farmer gets rich????? You go WAY in to debt, work your entire life to pay your bills, struggle to make a crop, pay off your land about the time you're too old to continue, THEN look at your net worth...... IF your land is paid off, you're worth hundreds of thousands, if not millions......IF YOU SELL OFF YOUR LIFE'S WORK.

Just don't look to amass a big pile of greenbacks in the bank by growing corn. It just don't happen that way....

Sorry for turning this into an editorial on the American farmers way of life..... I'm just a bit passionate about the subject....

 

[johan3400]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Indy, you could not have said it better. I am a past farmer, now returned to the farm at age 53. I decided to operate a vegetable farm and attempt to make a go of it. I have contracts with several restuarants and felt I had most bases covered. we started the spring with cold weather and then May 11 a hard frost. We have now been since then without rain. I am now looking for a full time job to pay the bills and operate the farm nights. I still believe in the future, but will enjoy the comfort of a job to pay the mortgage. All this to say there is no easy way to make good money on the farm. It requires hard work, faith and determination to face nature. I still would not trade the life for anything!!

 

[RalphVa]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

I took an organic gardening class a couple years ago. The instructor invited us out to his "farm". He makes a living selling organic produce at Saturday farmers' markets here in C'ville and Harrisonburg.

I went out to look at his place. He has a large green house, but not a monster. He tills about 2 acres of the 5 he has. He has a BCS to do his tilling and plowing. He hired a local farmer for the inital plowing though.

It's just him and his wife living in a little trailer house powered by solar cells on the site. Theirs is a true organic operation.

Ralph

 

[megotatractor]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

a good printing press with good paper. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Grapes seem to be the big money making crop from what I'ver heard. Another option is to grow fresh veggies and sell them at a farmers market on the weekends.

The whole farming, or ranching business seems like allot of work for minimum return for me. Have you considered an alternative market for your land?

Eco tourism is a booming industry. Bird watchers are the biggest spenders of all tourists. Do you have a good supply of birds? /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

There's no money in elk ranching, but I've thought having about having an elk ranch with cabins would work. Fence it in, buy some elk, build some rustic cabins and create some hiking trails. People go crazy for wildlife, and if you provide a clean, fun environment, it will work.

If your set on farming, I agree with the others, rent it out to somebody else, get paid UP FRONT and let them struggle to make a buck on it. If you don't know what your doing, it will cost you twice as much to do the same thing in twice the time.

Eddie

 

[sassafraspete]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

mary jane ?

 

[19977]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

sassafraspete /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif one good crop and you could retire for life on your own island

Mike

 

[roho]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Or, But, IF YOU get caught, I hear the givernment(is this MS or not) has a real good retirement community you can stay in also!

 

[EastTexFrank]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

You've seen all the answers and it boils down to 2 things ... rent it out or sell it to a developer. On a 120 acres some people can make money, fewer will make a profit and practically none will make a living.

I can only recite our experience. We've raised beef cattle on a 170 acres family farm since Methusila was a boy. Do we make money? ... yes we do. Do we make a profit? ... some years we do, but only because all the labor (myself, my wife and S-I-L) is free and none of us could make a living or keep on doing it without outside sources of income. That sadly is a fact.

You may be able to find a specialty product in a niche market that can make money but be prepared to spend a lot of time on the road marketing, selling and delivering it. It's not easy. Over the years we've experimented with many things, specialty vegetables, organically grown herbs and we've researched even more but we've never found a large, ready, consistent market for any of them. Beware of grape growing. One grower gave me the advice that, "If you want to end up with a small fortune growing grapes, start with a large one". Eco-tiourism is one thing that I haven't researched that may be profitable but the location would have to be very, very good.

Nope, enjoy your 120 acres for what it is, a wonderful place to spend your time working and tending the land but don't expect to retire rich from it.

 

[ed3357]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Since this is currently enrolled in CRP, you have a real opportunity to produce organically without any waiting period. From what I've heard, organic soybeans fetch $16 per bushel, vs $5.50 or so for the current gmo soybeans. Get your organic certificate, then rent the ground out for some real return on investment.
Eric

 

[Ryno1]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

Sell the farm, take the money to Vegas, bet it all on one roll of the dice. Win or lose. Saves you alot of work and money.

Honestly on 120 acres, probably the best thing is to either rent it out or put it back in CPR. You can raise cattle and make (maybe) a few bucks but nows not the time to be buying cattle (to high). The one thing you can do - is ENJOY the country living. I make absolutly ZERO off of our 40 acres, probably lose several thousand a year in upkeep but it is well worth the cost.

 

[dknarnd]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

If you are in the correct location, have deep top soil and have the time to wait for any return then the nursery business may be something to look at.

 

[Indydirtfarmer]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Indy, you could not have said it better. I am a past farmer, now returned to the farm at age 53. I decided to operate a vegetable farm and attempt to make a go of it. I have contracts with several restuarants and felt I had most bases covered. we started the spring with cold weather and then May 11 a hard frost. We have now been since then without rain. I am now looking for a full time job to pay the bills and operate the farm nights. I still believe in the future, but will enjoy the comfort of a job to pay the mortgage. All this to say there is no easy way to make good money on the farm. It requires hard work, faith and determination to face nature. I still would not trade the life for anything!! )</font>

I'm the 6th generation of farmers in my family (on MY side.... Wife is 5th generation on her side.) I have the luxury of previous relatives hard work, dedication, and investment behind my efforts. My (now 27 year old) son came to me 3 years ago with his "plan" to continue the tradition. Part of me was so proud, I thought my chest would explode. Another part of me was scared to death of what he would face in upcoming years.

His choice did add to my ambition to make this lifestyle work. I want my GRANDCHILDREN to have the same choice I had 31 years ago.....and my son had 3 years back.

What did I tell Jason about his future????? Think outside of the box. Don't fall into the rut "This is what we did last year, so let's do it the same way THIS year"...... Don't despare when you have 2 or 3 (or 10) bad years in a row. This is like playing the stock market.....What goes down MIGHT come back up.....someday.

All in all, I agree with you..... I wouldn't trade my life for ANYTHING!

 

[Bob_Skurka]

Re: What\'s the most profitable way make cash, farming

I've been sitting out of this thread because I am not a farmer, never have been, no family involved (unless you count the great grand parents in Slovakia). But I've often considred doing some mini or micro farming. I live on 10 acres but have 32 acres adjacent to me that is current leased to a 'real' farmer.

I've investigated farming as a business opportunity.

From what I can see there are some niche opportunities in farming that can make for a profitable venture. (but not a get rich scheme)
-- organic vegetables
-- organic chicken, turkey and duck
-- venision
-- specialty beef cattle, natural or organic
-- buffalo

In the above cases, striving for ultra-premium quality, working with supermarkets, restaurants, high end farmer's markets, specialty food shops, catalog/mail order sellers and specialty distributors seems to be the best opportunities.


It also seems there are many offbeat opportunities such as llama, ostrich, emu, etc. I discount those because the markets for such seems to be less mature, and often look like a pyramid scheme where you set yourself up as a breeder to sell to other people who will buy to breed, etc.


If anyone does find the best answer to this question, I'd love to know the answer!