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Would I be totally mad?

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    #32
    kevthegaff
    Registered Users Posts: 6,939 ✭✭✭kevthegaff


    I always do think about lads investing big money on a small landbase, its different if you have most of the facilities. guys are milking more cows to pay for higher rental,meal and fertiliser. Sometimes i wonder about expansion... but one big advantage of milking more cows if you have the landbase is an extra labour unit.


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    #33
    Sam Kade
    Registered Users Posts: 12,313 ✭✭✭✭Sam Kade


    Clutch Pack wrote: »
    28 c/l here on heavy ground.
    I'm slightly amused reading this thread and wondering where all this money is going to be made from dairying.Fifty cows here on heavy ground,single income with three secondary school going children with the first starting college in September.
    We would not be making anywhere near the average industrial wage.
    Unless you have a means of subsidising the cows with a good off farm income or large SFP (a figure i always look for but have yet to see mentioned in any beef to dairy conversion) then you are at nothing.
    We are rapidly approaching the day where the new small farmer is someone milking 100 cows on a single labour unit.
    Our discussion group is mentoring two new entrants to dairying both will be maxed at 60 cows,At 39 c/l both are just about solvent.
    When milk price falls which it will (April) i fear we could have a lot of "what have i done" moments among new entrants.
    Everyones situation is different. Just because someone is milking 100 cows doesn't mean they will survive price drops any more than someone milking 60.


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    #34
    mf240
    Registered Users Posts: 4,855 ✭✭✭mf240


    I think there is good enough money from a small herd if you can do the work yourself and don't spend stupid money on facilities the first day,

    Once you get into a number of cows that requires help unless you are able to get into a lot more you might be aswell off sticking with what you have.

    Only worry I have Is that the processors and factories have ruined any chance of a modest sized, beef, poultry,pig,sheep,tillage and now even vegetable farmers making a living, was quota the only thing that protected the smaller dairy farmer up too now?


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    #35
    biddy2013
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,643 ✭✭✭biddy2013


    kevthegaff wrote: »
    I always do think about lads investing big money on a small landbase, its different if you have most of the facilities. guys are milking more cows to pay for higher rental,meal and fertiliser. Sometimes i wonder about expansion... but one big advantage of milking more cows if you have the landbase is an extra labour unit.
    where will the labour come from, its hard enough to get good workers as it is


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    #36
    simx
    Registered Users Posts: 2,556 ✭✭✭simx


    mf240 wrote: »
    I think there is good enough money from a small herd if you can do the work yourself and don't spend stupid money on facilities the first day,

    Once you get into a number of cows that requires help unless you are able to get into a lot more you might be aswell off sticking with what you have.

    Only worry I have Is that the processors and factories have ruined any chance of a modest sized, beef, poultry,pig,sheep,tillage and now even vegetable farmers making a living, was quota the only thing that protected the smaller dairy farmer up too now?

    well thats the thing, i wouldnt have to spend big money tpo get back going, have cubicles, and parlour, just need tank, and a bit of a check and and anything machine, pulsater may need, the drystock should cancel out the cost of cows realistically, the last part of your post is the most worrying to me too, when everyone else is mad going milking should i be heading in the other direction as far away from milking as possible? i know nobody knows what is going to happen


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    #37
    kevthegaff
    Registered Users Posts: 6,939 ✭✭✭kevthegaff


    For the last 10 years dairy farming has been the most profitabe, we dont know whats gona happen but id prefer to be milking than be at the mercy of the likes of Larry


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    #38
    Timmaay
    Registered Users Posts: 11,394 ✭✭✭✭Timmaay


    simx wrote: »
    well thats the thing, i wouldnt have to spend big money tpo get back going, have cubicles, and parlour, just need tank, and a bit of a check and and anything machine, pulsater may need, the drystock should cancel out the cost of cows realistically, the last part of your post is the most worrying to me too, when everyone else is mad going milking should i be heading in the other direction as far away from milking as possible? i know nobody knows what is going to happen

    What sort of cow would you be considering? I'd tend to agree with kev etc in that 60/80 would be alot more doable, however if you had the likes of 45 HOs knocking out say 7500l/550kg ms a year, that would be say 330kL of milk, and running a tight ship you should be able to average 10c/l across most years. So I guess the question is do you think 33k is a sufficient salary for the workload?


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    #39
    simx
    Registered Users Posts: 2,556 ✭✭✭simx


    Timmaay wrote: »
    What sort of cow would you be considering? I'd tend to agree with kev etc in that 60/80 would be alot more doable, however if you had the likes of 45 HOs knocking out say 7500l/550kg ms a year, that would be say 330kL of milk, and running a tight ship you should be able to average 10c/l across most years. So I guess the question is do you think 33k is a sufficient salary for the workload?

    yeah i probably would have been leaning towards the holstein infulence alright as i would be restricted with what numbers i could hold, i would be happy enough with 33k, i do like milking cows anyway, and i am realistic i know what work is involved as we had milkers in the past and have done work with various dairy farmers, would be planning to sell all calves, would have some job to make 33k in drystock, and with this new cap arrangement i will be losing a bit on sfp too, somebody mentioned 0.22 i think as a rough figure to go by for cost to produce a litre of milk, i was just wondering what is being included in this figure?


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    #40
    Sam Kade
    Registered Users Posts: 12,313 ✭✭✭✭Sam Kade


    simx wrote: »
    yeah i probably would have been leaning towards the holstein infulence alright as i would be restricted with what numbers i could hold, i would be happy enough with 33k, i do like milking cows anyway, and i am realistic i know what work is involved as we had milkers in the past and have done work with various dairy farmers, would be planning to sell all calves, would have some job to make 33k in drystock, and with this new cap arrangement i will be losing a bit on sfp too, somebody mentioned 0.22 i think as a rough figure to go by for cost to produce a litre of milk, i was just wondering what is being included in this figure?
    Variable and fixed costs which is the total cost. It will vary with land type, cow type, input price etc. it's an average figure.


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    #41
    RoscommonTom
    Registered Users Posts: 918 ✭✭✭RoscommonTom


    Now is the time to start with the quota going,best of luck


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    #42
    RoscommonTom
    Registered Users Posts: 918 ✭✭✭RoscommonTom


    Now is the time to start with the quota going,best of luck


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    #43
    Clutch Pack
    Closed Accounts Posts: 29 ✭Clutch Pack


    RoscommonTom wrote: »
    Now is the time to start with the quota going,best of luck
    I can't understand the headlong rush to have clusters on in April 15.
    Why not sit back and wait to see what happens amid all the chaos of abolition.


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    #44
    frazzledhome
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,278 ✭✭✭frazzledhome


    Clutch Pack wrote: »
    I can't understand the headlong rush to have clusters on in April 15.
    Why not sit back and wait to see what happens amid all the chaos of abolition.

    FFS, you're either getting in or not. Roll your sleeves and work hard is the answer. I wouldn't do the work that's involved for 33k. It would be worth the effort if a bigger prize was at the end


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    #45
    Sam Kade
    Registered Users Posts: 12,313 ✭✭✭✭Sam Kade


    frazzledhome wrote: »
    FFS, you're either getting in or not. Roll your sleeves and work hard is the answer. I wouldn't do the work that's involved for 33k. It would be worth the effort if a bigger prize was at the end
    Exactly, you could spend 2-3 years dawdling around waiting to see what happens and end up 3 years behind in your plans and you don't get any younger.


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    #46
    keep going
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,551 ✭✭✭keep going


    Clutch Pack wrote: »
    I can't understand the headlong rush to have clusters on in April 15.
    Why not sit back and wait to see what happens amid all the chaos of abolition.

    As I mentioned I another thread I dont see many signs of a mad dash for next year so far in dairystock prices but maybe its happening in other parts of the country


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    #47
    keep going
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,551 ✭✭✭keep going


    Clutch Pack wrote: »
    28 c/l here on heavy ground.
    I'm slightly amused reading this thread and wondering where all this money is going to be made from dairying.Fifty cows here on heavy ground,single income with three secondary school going children with the first starting college in September.
    We would not be making anywhere near the average industrial wage.
    Unless you have a means of subsidising the cows with a good off farm income or large SFP (a figure i always look for but have yet to see mentioned in any beef to dairy conversion) then you are at nothing.
    We are rapidly approaching the day where the new small farmer is someone milking 100 cows on a single labour unit.
    Our discussion group is mentoring two new entrants to dairying both will be maxed at 60 cows,At 39 c/l both are just about solvent.
    When milk price falls which it will (April) i fear we could have a lot of "what have i done" moments among new entrants.
    Feel free to ignore but can you give an outline of why its costing 28c a litre to produce milk, im not criticizing or anything just curious is it all feed


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    #48
    freedominacup
    Registered Users Posts: 7,920 ✭✭✭freedominacup


    keep going wrote: »
    As I mentioned I another thread I dont see many signs of a mad dash for next year so far in dairystock prices but maybe its happening in other parts of the country

    The same around here. Plenty of cows in the area already. There'll be plenty of extra cows on these farms but I don't see a huge amount of conversions happening.


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