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Beef Farming- Are you full time/part time?

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    #32
    mr.stonewall
    Registered Users Posts: 1,799 ✭✭✭mr.stonewall


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120489573#Comment_120489573

    The thing is there is a lot of factors holding people back from being full time, be it personal (financial,career progression wellbeing, caring to others) or factors on farm ( size, fragmentation, prior investment etc)

    Work from home has been a game changer, but still a large cohort will not be able to access it, due to career choice. Are we seeing the option of a 3 day week, reduced hours can help. Many part timers run there own SMEs and have other relying on them for the cheque at the end of the week.

    There is only so long that many can keep burning the candle at both ends



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    #33
    [Deleted User]
    Posts: 0 ✭ [Deleted User]


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120489648#Comment_120489648

    Docility and cows that calf themselves most of the time makes a difference with breeding stock. Obviously having hard calving bulls won’t help.

    Breeding your own docile stock will reduce hardship at herding, dosing etc

    The tight calving and accurate scanning detail would help anyone with breeding stock.

    Lads sourcing calves in dairy beef would ideally have a good partnership with a local dairy farmer.



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    #34
    mr.stonewall
    Registered Users Posts: 1,799 ✭✭✭mr.stonewall


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120489696#Comment_120489696

    + 1 for breeding your own replacements

    Scanning is a must, but having serve dates is nearly more important to helping a tightening of the calving spread.

    If you can buy your calves from 1 herd only it helps greatly

    Fulltime farmers both beef and diary have a lot to learn from us part timers and vice versa.



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    #35
    mr.stonewall
    Registered Users Posts: 1,799 ✭✭✭mr.stonewall


    Looking at the results above it lays the cold hard facts of where we have gone.

    Has the number of part timers given a serious buffer to the processors and feedlots?

    Has our farm orgs forgotten about the strength in numbers of part timers

    What has DAFM and the advisory bodies done to support part time farmer?



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    #36
    Bass Reeves
    Registered Users Posts: 18,661 ✭✭✭✭Bass Reeves


    IMO a hundred acres of decent land, on a well run drystock farm would give you around the average industrial wage.

    National average farm payment/HA is about 260/HA( most long term drystock farmers would be a tad higher) add in Criss and ANC and you be a tad above 15k. Acres wound bring in another 3-5k net

    Simple store to beef would leave a margin of 300+/ head over a 12 months finishing period. On 90-100 cattle that is 27-35k of a working margin. Total income 45-55k.

    If you were fulltime you could probably make a few bob as a factory agent/ doing a bit of buying for other lads, haulage or summer contracting. As well you probably would have 50% of your own heating costs out of the farm.

    I retired 3-4 years ago. I have not started to draw down my pension fund yet. The income off the farm covers all my expenses. Yes the other half works but I generally pay a lot of expenses out of the farm account( heating oil, phone, ESB, car taxes, insurance, house insurance. If I went to replace the jeep tomorrow morning the farm would pay for it. There is a land loan repayment of 11k a year out of it as well

    Ya I have a couple of rental properties but the farm financed one of them. I am working off what use to be 24HA(60 acres) going for area aid. It will be gone up by 2-3 this year.

    However the workload is 18-20 hours a week and would not be much more on a 100 acre farm if it was owned and on one block around the home house.

    However You would manage must full time jobs with it now. WFH has probably added option of job choice to it now. If you have a decent education a lot of jobs in finance, Insurance, regulation, professional, government etc have the advantage of WFH anything from 2-3 days to virtually fulltime.

    Slava Ukrainii



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    #37
    Rusheseverywhere
    Registered Users Posts: 305 ✭✭Rusheseverywhere


    There is probably a sweet spot for farm size. I have over 200ac and decent direct payments over 50k. The prob is maintence etc not alone cost but time. Also I found with organic and straw beddign etc (Mix of modern hosing and ancient sheds) with some old sheds I cannot get into with loader. I waste so many hours a day messing around bedding straw cleaning etc. All about efficency but that costs money. Sucklers are a time rob, I really need to stop them like a lad with a drink problem.

    A hidden down side with being full time is every lad pulls out of you as you are around and with alot of the lads it is soft talk you get and no more other lads sound out. Also can be lonely as said above easy to go a day or two and see no-one.



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    #38
    Dunedin
    Registered Users Posts: 2,333 ✭✭✭Dunedin


    Another little caveat to full time v part time. I did one year full time about 14 years ago. I was spending way more rhan I really needed to on the farm in terms of maintenance and improvements because I had the time.

    When farming part time now, I don’t have the time (but do make sure all essentials are done). and more money in my pocket at the end of the year.



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