Most farmers do alot more numbers, cause land costs also need to be factored in....he is paying taxes on the land and then transportation costs to and from. The little stuff can add up to be 500 dollars and can make or break if something is worth it.
The thought about adding a younger animal as you process (small farm) sounds legit, perhaps adding a sheep as a companion if you're not ready for another steer could help or if you family is into horses a single horse(rescue horse or mule) might work.🤔
That's a good thought. I've considered sheep, and I've been watching "The Shepherdess." She's very knowledgeable and paints a positive picture of sheep as a pasture alternate to cows. Greg Judy does as well. Thanks!
I do cow calf and finish a few. We take two years to finish and are always replacing. This years feeder price I could only buy two. I definitely don't get ten dollars a pound for freezer beef in NY
As long as you have grass to feed to them you should keep them and talk to the butcher....cause if they arent busy they might give you a break in pricing to harvest the animal 1 month sooner. Also you could have vet costs which would drive up the final pricing of the beef. But i do think you are paying too much for your animal....you can go to one of the bigger buyers and talk to them and buy a couple animals off them that they purchase a year....might just have to buy him a 50 dollar bottle of booze cause he works for the bigger corporation.
Thanks for sharing. I am looking to do something similar. Do you eat 4 beef cows a year? I am planning on picking up 2 steers, harvesting 1 for myself, and selling the other one. (not sure on the logistics of selling 1 yet) I would raise just 1 if i could, because my fiance and i dont need 2 beef in the freezer, but with the whole herd thing thats why. How many acres are you grazing with 4?
We don't eat 4 per year. I got 4 because I didn't know what my real requirement would be and I didn't know if I was going to try and keep them for a longer time (a protein supply on the hoof) or if I was going to harvest them all and sell the other 3 for profit. As for selling them, I haven't figured that out. My wife is way better at that than I am and she isn't afraid to ask for the right price - I'm more of a "let me make you a good deal" kind of guy (and we wouldn't make anything). Joel Salatin talks about selling your product in his books (You Can Farm, Salad Bar Beef, Poultry Profits, etc.), so I probably just need to follow his model. I've got about 19 of my 55 acres fenced, but I really only have about 6 acres of good grass. The rest is still forested, so I supplement with hay. Thanks for watching and commenting!
