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thinking outside the box

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jigs

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with the economy like it is, the status quo is not going to work anymore, so I have been thinking up a new venture to make more black ink, than red..... however I have always sold my calves at weaning, never fed them out. hoping to get some advice from the deep well of knowledge here.....
from weaning to fat, what is the rough feed cost in your cattle?
farm fresh beef, how much higher should it be worth than your average grocery store?
is 205 days the average finish time?

thanks in advance !
 
Wishing you the best of luck, Feeding the cattle isn't the problem I feel selling ALL the beef is.
Seems that's where many farmgate producers run into trouble. Seem many can't afford or don't want to buy a side or quarter so the less desirable cuts pile up.
I'm sure PPRM could give you solid advice as he seems to have it figured out pretty good.
 
talk.newagtalk.com


Might go ask that question there. Wealth of knowledge on that board and several guys doing exactly what you want to know.
 
A ranch between our place and Miles City, Mt feed their cattle and sell some through a processing place there. We have been buying a half beef when we need it because the carcasses grade choice or better. It has been superior meat. The last time we got a half,the processing place said they were having trouble selling the meat now because people couldn't afford to buy that much at a time.

Have you checked the price of processing a whole beef lately? It would scare you to death. Totally out of line, IMO.

Good luck, jigs, whatever you decide.
 
I've wondered if you had a refrigeration unit of some type, and maybe a meat grinder, some other butchering tools, if there would be a certain number of people interested (maybe 2 or more families going together) in butchering something themselves to maybe save some money and know what they're getting?

A couple of weeks ago we had a nice bull calf, coming up on a year old that had been getting corn, jump over a gate and broke his back leg. My son and two or three of his friends butchered him, cut him up, and everything and did a good job, but then again they are hunters. There are good videos on Youtube that show exactly how to cut up a beef carcass.

And then again it might be a bad idea, huge PITA with too much effort on your part. Get your money up front. :wink:
 
No fancy Green tractors works best on my place can pay land payments selling calves.
 
Jigs,

I feel you are actually asking two different questions. I have done combinations of both.

The answer to feeding always comes down to three things. Feed cost, risk management and, do you know what a finished animal looks like for the market you are selling it to.

Cattle feeding and selling beef are additional and separate enterprises. They both take additional time. I'm fortunate enough to be about 35 miles from a Tyson plant so I have an outlet for my additional cattle. I am also 3-4 hours from Portland and Seattle to have a huge customer base that I only need to fill a small percentage of population from to be big to me. I also worked in cattle feeding and learned a lot about sorting fats. I also have some incredibly reasonable feed resources.

Figure out what you want to feed and if there's a market for that. I feel like we are fortunate in this industry in that "Quality Beef" can mean so many things Ultra lean to Wagyu for example.

I'm trying to keep this simple as it has gotten really complex for me. I've seen so many producer meat efforts fail for the simple fact they don't know what they don't know about meat. Really find a great meat person/butcher and listen to them. I have about 6 people I can tap into for questions.

I'm not certain about your operation and the number of people with various skills. I find as I grow, what works for me is finding farm labor while I focus on the rest. I have worked hard for a long time getting a reputation. I am just moving to the point that I am selling a lot of carcasses as opposed to cuts. But, my reputation was earned selling cuts. The Butchers saw the beef and saw opportunity to sell and market it.

I early on recognized that I needed to have beef available year round with what I do. I started some fall calvers and moved my calving to late spring. I source calves from guys who calve Late January/Feb. I also source open Heifers to fill in the gaps.

Anyways, feel free to reach out for specific questions. One thing I have learned by filling in the roles of the "Middlemen".... They earn everything they take.
 
Jiggsey, your idea can be done. Those ag economists at state have been urging farmers to get closer to retail for years.

Feeding is the easy part. I figure 50 bushel of corn takes a calf from 6cwt to 12 cwt. likely your market is all natural. With corn worth $.06, your feed cog might be $.40. Understand feed cog only buys feed, not feed wagon or waterers.

If you could supply some area restaurants with steaks, you could deal off the cheaper stuff. I would guess you make more money as you split up your sides. If you start small and build as demand pulls you, you could make it work. Small is 5 head placed a month fed out of a gravity box and a bucket, your grain processed at coop. Remember, your pens must always be on display. Maybe not fancy, but clean and control flies and dust. Cattle will do enough better to pay for this anyway.

I think it was FH that mentioned processing fees. They seem high to me. You might cut a volume deal or eventually build your own (hablo espaniol).

Proximity to metropolitan centers is important. Marketing is the key. Observe trump for building a brand
 
I think we have a plan set up with a local butcher, and the state certification in line to sell retail. the typical scratch and plant is not going to work.... I will plant corn and chop it all for silage.
 
You need to work with a nutritionist on that corn silage. It's a good primary ration, but you're going to have to add more grain. If you use multiple grains - like corn,barley mix, you can feed hot more safely. You're going to get all your fiber from the silage, so you can't use alfalfa for protein. So you'll be sourcing some bean meal. The problem I have with purple nutritionists is you simply must get up so early to talk to them before they fall of the wagon for the day.
 

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