am i dreaming

danpaddyandy

hey im a qs working in my profession since i left college 2 years ago. I have always had a big interest in farming and over the last few years i am finding myself being drawn towards farming and have little or no interest in my job
My ideal profession would be a suckler farmer and finishing all the progeny.
I am currently doing the green cert and we re visiting farms with 60-80 closed herd sucklers on 100 up acres.
I am going to be taking over our own farm of drystock 40 to 50 stores on around 65 acres in a few years
I am trying to figure out would i have a good standard of living if i finished work and started on my ideal career. I feel we do not have enough land to hold 60 or more sucklers while finishing the progeny.
In the future a mortgage would have to be paid for, probably a family to look after,a new suckler shed to pay off for, 30-40 acres would need to be rented/ideally purchased. I wonder would my ideal career turn into a nightmare without an off the farm job. i do the lotto twice a week without fail.

dasheriff

well lad not to be blunt now but you will need the lotto to fullfill your dreams..You wud def need a off farm job but i am working a 3 day week at the moment and farming the rest of the time and Im doing ok paying the mortgage and all so maybe something like that would suit you in time..

My best advice to you anyway is to take your time and tip away in your spare time at the moment and get things the way you`d like them before you make any big changes..

Best of luck..

yessam

Try and mind the job. Make the farm suit the job. Farming is very unsecure. Best of luck to you. I am in a similar position and have no choice but to keep the job

Belongamick

I know what you mean by fed up with the day job and see farming as an alternative - there is a superior quality of life on the land but making it pay and having a decent standard of living is the conflict that the previous post points to.
One suggestion may be to consider a career in teaching. You may have a bit of work to do in order to qualify but with a steady income and generous time off to farm it could be a viable alternative. There is a desperate shortage of male teachers out there so it may be worth considering.
The whole farming gig is wildly un predictable year to year - a steady income is critical.

iamthe43

I say go for it. I 'was' a QS up until last year when I lost my job. Now im doing something completely different, starting a food business from scratch, and fair enough, im not exactly rolling in it these days, but im doing something I enjoy. Beats measuring and spending the day infront of Excell imo

Dozer1

The big obstacle for all of us young farmers is the price of land as mentioned in alot of other posts, its crazy people still think 10K an acre is what its worth and that's just mad. From any of the "research" that's being done all they come out with is drive up stocking rate, if you haven't got good quality land or access to rent/buy land then its a dead end.

I'm afraid with the current variety of prices the factories are giving going farming full time is a non option for the majority suckler/beef farmers.

Hope the lotto works out, trying the euromillions myself;)

danpaddyandy

fair play to you iamthe43 your the only one with a bit of initiative and want to do something different..was also thinking about a food business health food deliveries ie healthy juices soups sandwiches to eg. ida parks ets, workplaces. or maybe healthy dinners delivered using foods from the farm...chicken,lamb pork vegetables etc the masterplan continues the world is our oyster

pajero12

danpaddyandy wrote: »

fair play to you iamthe43 your the only one with a bit of initiative and want to do something different..was also thinking about a food business health food deliveries ie healthy juices soups sandwiches to eg. ida parks ets, workplaces. or maybe healthy dinners delivered using foods from the farm...chicken,lamb pork vegetables etc the masterplan continues the world is our oyster

Though I can't advise as i'm only a young lad...Good luck with it!You've a great attitude despite the naysayers!

SARAH ANNE

HMMM
MEET A GIRL, DONT GET MARRIED, GET HER PREGNANT X2, GET AFREE GAFF, GO ON THE MICKEY MONEY, RUN THE FARM ON THE SIDE LOL
JUST AN IDEA, OR AM I DREAMING LOL

whelan1

why not just become a td and have most of the year off , in all seriousness do not underestimate the worth of having a day job , good luck in whatever you decide

MrPint

hello danpaddyandy,
its good to see someone trying to make a living of the land without being a sucker for the grant scheme's that let your land fall idle. We here have tried many different sorts of food sales and I'll give you the experiences i have made. The relevent authorities (HSE,planning,council) are all a buch of inept nincompoops. They are not interested in the small bussiness holders. They have their ways (which off course are the only ones) regardless off how other producers accross the whole of europe are doin it. they have unreasonable expectations and actually know nothing of their job except what they learned in the FAS course they used to get their jobs.
You need to invest serious money in the infrastructure of your business especially if anything to do with food. you can be as prepared and cleanly as you like but if they see you cutting veg on the wrong colour plastic cutting board its game over for you.( and yes thats how daft they are).

all the best
MrPint

sorry for the pessimism, many years of deeling with theses people will do that to you