More efficent Farming

reidyj

Hi folks,

Not wanting to come across as an eco warrior or anything, just would like to open a discussion on more cost efficent farming. The costs of running a farm have crept up substantially while income is on a decline. I would love for various people to point out various simple cost saving techniques.

ie- im currently starting to collect rainwater to use for drinking water for live stock in the slatted house as opposed to using our water mains which has got quiet expensive....


other ideas?

nilhg

I am a member of a discussion group and we set up a purchasing group. We buy fuel, fert, sprays and some seeds. However the big savings were made when we did a group deal with a bank and later one of the insurance companies.

Some folk were slow to come in with us at the start but when they saw the possible savings any worries they had soon disappeared.

sme

Saving money can often be a problem if you are not willing to spend on capital investment. The old addage is true that to make money you have to spend money. Although a lot is dependent on your farm size as economy of scale comes into play. But i have found that on our farm that the best way to increase profit (rather than trying to save money) is by introducing better practices. This often involves large investment.
My situation may not be applicable to most as we are mainly in soft fruit with a small suckler herd. We have found that it often more cost effective to pay double for a new machine than struggle with a second hand one.
Time management is an essential part of business, with everything that you do you should ask yourself: in the long run will this make me profit. If not, you shouldn't be doing it.

reidyj

Its funny, years ago people done the same thing and set up co-ops to save money, now the co ops are the ones making the excess profit!

robototitico

I think that the co-op movement should be revitalised, with a bottom up approach (so to speak!)

Co-Ops are massive corporations now that dont benefit farmers enough.


Also I would be curious to know how the rainwater collecting worked out?

reilig

We recently hosted a Teagasc farm work on our farm which focused a lot on saving money. Some of the points were:

Spreading slurry before mid may can save you hundreds on fertilizer - On top of ordinary cattle slurry you just need 25kg to the acre of 46% Urea (which I sourced this week at €310 per ton). Slurry spread on meadows after silage is cut is pointless as it grows grass that cattle won't eat, leaves a white sole which usually needs to be topped before the next year, and much of the nutrients are washed away during winter rain. Yet 75% of farms around here will still wait until silage is cut to get their slurry out.

Simple things like using creep gates to allow calves to forward feed ahead of the cows in pasture saves meal and helps your claves to grow bigger.

Wilting silage - 50% of silage made in round bales is given less than 24 hours to wilt. We cut with an 8ft disc mower, shake out the meadow at least once and row the silage up. Drier silage means less bales, less wrap and less handling - it doesn't affect the DMD. If you had quality grass 99% in hay and then wrapped it, you would have the same DMD.

Better quality silage means better fed animals. Suckler cows will perform better - they won't need any meal supplements during the winter and will have shorter calving intervals. Animals that you are fattening will finish heavier and leave you more money. (Sold 16 12 month old bull weinlings on saturday - averaged 480kg and €940 - they left a good profit. I know people who keep bullocks until they are 24 to 30 months and cannot get these prices).

The rainwater is something that I will have to invest in - we have no water charges as yet.

Good savings can also be made by buying grain direct from the grower. I tried it in 2008/09 season, but will have a better go at it in 2009/10 when I have better handling facilities.

It has to be about efficiency rather than cutting back. So much is wasted on our farms, mostly valuable slurry, but we can also aim to produce better quality silage which will in turn be better quality feed for our animals.

Sorry for the rant, but I just see so many other people's farms where they waste so much. Its like as if they don't want to make any profit on it. I'm a firm believer, that any man or woman could make a reasonable income on 100 acres (€35k +) if they farmed properly. (But not many do).

Curious Geroge

nilhg wrote: »

I am a member of a discussion group and we set up a purchasing group. We buy fuel, fert, sprays and some seeds. However the big savings were made when we did a group deal with a bank and later one of the insurance companies.

Some folk were slow to come in with us at the start but when they saw the possible savings any worries they had soon disappeared.

This is interesting.. What sort of dicsounts did you manage with the group ? how big is this group ? Also, what part of the country ?

nilhg

Curious Geroge wrote: »

This is interesting.. What sort of dicsounts did you manage with the group ? how big is this group ? Also, what part of the country ?

There is a confidentiality clause, without which any group will fall (or be pulled) apart so I can't comment directly, you have to do your homework properly, make sure that everybody knows what they are getting into and be prepared for heavy opposition from the local merchants.

If you get it right the savings are considerable, when we started we set some realistic targets and managed to beat them.

Our scale is large, but smaller groups are working very well all across the country.

MfMan

Good fencing and particularly good gates; they may be costly to erect and require regular maintenance but they will make your life immeasurably easier over time. I am regularly getting crucified with livestock wandering because for various reasons the fencing isn't up to standard. Costs me many man hours during the year to put right, time which I can't always afford. Good handling facilities are also a must. Nothing worse than penning cattle for a test etc. when suddenly a loose gate falls over and the herd scatters in all directions! For bovine farmers, perhaps have your annual test in Spring before turnout. Testing cattle out of a shed is tough work but it may save you loads of hassle herding them up again later in the year (and pray that you have a clear test!). When your cattle are out, try to do your herding in the morning so if there is something wrong you have at least the day to sort it out. Become adept or do a course in mechanical maintenance and servicing; save money by being able to do such jobs yourself. Learning how to fix leaky pipes is another tip. Know the correct fittings and how to install them; it's frustrating to fix a leak only to see it seeping again a few days later because the fitting isn't on tight enough. Ensure that the lights in your trailers and other ancillaries are working properly. As someone has mentioned, invest in good equipment.

These aforementioned may not save one much money but I find it's better to spend a bit more and save yourself time and hassle in the long run - for many farmers time is money anyway.