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ATTRA Question of the WeekWhat resources can you give me for starting a beef and poultry operation? J.C. Answer: I am pleased to provide you with information on starting a beef cattle and pastured poultry farm. Several key areas come to mind that need to be considered in developing a more ecologically appropriate, and healthier, beef and poultry production system. In this letter I will address the following production factors: 1. the pasture resource, I have included in this letter a resource list for more information on starting a farming enterprise, grassfed beef and poultry production, and a list of appropriate ATTRA publications. The Pasture Resource Grassfed beef cattle production, whether you’re raising 100, 10, or one, is predicated on, as the name implies, grass. But here grass is referring to the whole pasture resource. Cattle are, of course, primarily grazers, which means they eat grass and other herbs such as clovers, vetches, medics, as well as many other plants we might at first consider weeds. I fact, I have observed cattle eating thistle, knapweed, dock, and certainly dandelion. Most plants are edible at least during some stage of their life. Usually this stage is the vegetative stage, before a seed head emerges on the plant. During this stage plants have the highest concentration of nutrients and are the most palatable to livestock. We as cattle raisers can take advantage of this state of affairs by managing our pastures to stay in the vegetative stage as long as possible. To accomplish this it is necessary to implement some type of grazing management plan. A grazing management plan need not be complex. It merely has to direct the grazing animal to eat when and where you want them to in order to keep the plants in their growing stage (vegetative stage). The basic principles of grazing management include: 1. proper timing of grazing (corresponding to plant stage) For instance, in Alabama, pasture green-up might occur sometime in March. It is important to allow the plants to get to sufficient height prior to turning the cattle onto the pasture. By waiting until the grass is 5 to 8 inches high the roots have become well developed and the plants can handle defoliation. Grazing intensity, or duration, can be taken care of by designing a suitable rotational grazing system. Rotational grazing, as the name implies, involves moving the cattle periodically from pasture or paddock to paddock. For instance, a good rule of thumb is to split a pasture into 10 to 16 paddocks with electric wire or electric tape, and stock each paddock heavily for a short amount of time. Most graziers stock 25 cows to the acre in this system, and adjust as the season progresses. By doing this you are forcing the cattle to eat all that’s there, grass, weeds, and all. But before the animals eat the plants to the ground, you move them to the next pasture. This takes into account the third principle. It’s important to leave several inches of grass to allow adequate leaf area for subsequent regrowth. Depending on the species, you will need to leave from 2 to 6 inches of plant stubble at moving time. A 10-paddock rotational grazing system that allows animals to graze each pasture for 3 days will give each paddock 27 days of rest. Most grasses in your region will need 20 to 30 days of rest between grazing events to allow adequate regrowth. Cattle breeds, general health, and nutrition Selecting the right genetics for grassfed production is important. In general, you will want a breed that combines maternal traits like milking ability with growing and marbling ability. For this reason the English breeds usually fit best with grass operations. Breeds in this category include Angus, Hereford, Shorthorn, and other, rarer breeds such as Devon and Dexter. Information on rare breeds can be found at the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy website at http://www.albc-usa.org/. As far as animal health goes, prevention is the only way to deal with health issues in a livestock operation. The loss in production that accompanies illness in cattle can often eat away at any profit you would be expecting. Cattle on grass tend to be healthier than cattle in confinement because of several factors. First off, grass is a natural feed for cattle, whereas the high levels of grain that is fed to confined animals in a feedlot contribute to digestive disorders and liver abscesses. In addition, cattle on pasture tend to be freer from parasites and pathogens that can hamper production in a confinement situation. Regardless of these anecdotes, a sound vaccination program should be administered to protect your herd. Most herds need to be vaccinated against a complex of clostridial organisms and a series of respiratory problems. Your females should be vaccinated against brucellosis as well. Your veterinarian will be able to tell you which organisms are important in your area. Since your cattle will be consuming predominantly or exclusively grass, your nutrition program will be critically tied up with your grazing management plan. Remember, growing grass and clovers that are consumed while in the seedless, vegetative stage are the most nutritious feedstuffs your animals can get. A pasture that is composed of 70 percent grass and 30 percent clover will have from 13 to 21 percent crude protein and as much as 60 percent total digestible nutrients during the vegetative stage. However, a growing steer often needs more nutrition than your average pasture can deliver in order to put pounds of lean beef on. This is why, for a growing operation, your pasture has to be primo. If its not, you might consider supplementing with high quality alfalfa hay or cottonseed meal for protein or corn for energy. Again, a good rotation and careful attention to pasture management can offer a good nutritional package to growing cattle. Pasture management is the basis of a sustainable grass farm. Pasture serves as the main source of nutrition for the cow herd, dry cows, steers, and developing heifers on the farm. To accomplish this it is very important to first establish a baseline of information by conducting a systematic assessment of the grazing resource. A grazing plan can then be implemented and periodically assessed with a pasture monitoring program. Grass-fed Cattle Resources Blanchet, Kevin, Howard Moechnig and Jodi DeJong-Hughes. 2003. Grazing Systems Planning Guide. University of Minnesota Extension Service. Ruechel, Julius. 2006. Grass-Fed Cattle: How to Produce and Market Natural Beef. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing. Dakota Beef, LLC Laura's Lean Beef Tallgrass Beef Company, LLC Recordkeeping software for cattle. Probably one of the most workable and accessible programs I have seen is the OSU Animal Science Extension Computer Software, which can be downloaded from their site at http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/software/. Some of the spreadsheets require Lotus 1-2-3, and I have not been able to work them on Excel. Another very good program is Standardized Performance Analysis (SPA). SPA Software identifies ways to lower the cost of production while practicing resource stewardship. Using information gathered from production and financial records, this software program enables cattlemen to blend data to provide benchmarks like rate of return on assets, net income per cow, pounds weaned per exposed cow, grazing and feed costs per cow. SPA was initiated by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association's (NCBA) producer-led effort. It is designed to help producers reduce their cost of production and improve their production and marketing efficiency. More information on SPA can be found at http://agrisk.tamu.edu/information.htm and http://www.beefusa.org/prodstandardperformanceanalysis_spa_.aspx. Most beef cattle in the US are marketed through the traditional commodity beef channels. In the commodity marketing chain, cattle are raised on cow-calf farms and ranches that sell calves either in the spring or fall through such outlets as cattle auction barns or directly to a feedlot through an order buyer. Order buyers typically buy truckloads at a time, and auctions are utilized for smaller lots. The commodity cattle marketing channels are effective at moving large numbers of product but don’t necessarily provide adequate returns to farmers and ranchers. In order to bypass the middleman, some cattle raisers are marketing their beef directly to consumers through farmers markets, restaurants, and other venues. Grassfed beef is becoming more popular with health-conscious consumers and those seeking food produced more ecologically and in keeping with good stewardship practices. Some very useful resources for direct marketing include the publications and websites below. Holden, Jan. 2005. How to Direct Market Your Beef. Sustainable Agriculture Network. Sustainable Agriculture Publications The Legal Guide for Direct Farm Marketing, by Neil D. Hamilton. 1999. 235 p. The Agricultural Law Center Food Safety and Inspection Service Technical Service Center From The Carcass To The Kitchen: Competition And The Wholesale Meat Market AgMRC – Ag Marketing Resource Center Pastured Poultry Production Listed below are several poultry publications. These publications focus on alternative production, for which information is less available. It contains real-life observations and highlights several innovative producers. These “how-to” manuals address production systems and outdoor access for poultry, as well as information on breeds, nutrition, health, economics, and housing. Resources: ATTRA Publications • Cattle Production: Considerations for Pasture-Based Beef and Dairy Producers The Stockman Grass Farmer Magazine Resources for Beginning Farmers: Building a Sustainable Future by Beth Nelson, Caitrin Mullan, Jill O'Neill, and Debra Elias Morse, and published by the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture (MISA). The complete document is located at http://www.misa.umn.edu/vd/bfarmers.html, or by contacting MISA at: Exploring the Small Farm Dream Informational Toolkit for Beginning Farmers Building a Sustainable Business: A Guide to Developing a Business Plan for Farms and Rural Businesses. 280 pp; published in 2003. Salatin, Joel. 1998. You Can Farm: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Start and Succeed in a Farm Enterprise. Polyface, Swoope, VA. 480 p. Posted:
October 6, 2008
What information can you give me on starting a greenhouse business? N.O. Answer: I am pleased to provide you with information regarding greenhouse production, budgeting, and marketing. In general, you want to grow a higher value product in greenhouses offset the labor and cost of setting them up. Lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers work well for greenhouse production, as they are fairly high value crops and can be produced off-season for value-added marketing. Structures: I have listed a few greenhouse suppliers that should be able to consult you on different structures and the types that would work with the specific goals of your organization and your climate consideration (i.e. the high wind in your area). I would encourage you to shop around for supplies and shipping costs. Shade cloth will significantly reduce your cooling costs in the summer and I would urge you to incorporate the costs of this into your budget. The suppliers that I list below all carry shadecloth, just ask them for an estimate of costs. The Texas A&M publication “Greenhouse Vegetable Guide” discusses the various greenhouse structures. If you would like to do year-round production, you will need a heating system for the winter time. This should be accounted for in your enterprise budget. This is a 137 page publication that covers many topics related to greenhouse production. Enterprise Budgets Prior to sinking lots of money into a greenhouse venture, growers should examine produce prices in their region and estimate their cost of production. Historically, the breakeven price for most greenhouse tomatoes has been around 75 cents per pound, with selling prices ranging from 90 cents to $1.60 per pound. The break-even price for cucumbers is similar–around 75 cents per pound. Estimates of net income from conventional greenhouse tomatoes range from $3,100 to $18,500 per greenhouse unit. These estimates are for good yields and favorable market conditions. Low yields, or a dip in the market, can lead to negative returns to the grower. Marketing: Resources: Born, Holly. 2004. Organic Marketing Resources. ATTRA/ NCAT Publication #124 VanSickle, J.J. 2006. Marketing Strategies for Vegetable Growers. University of Florida IFAS Extension. Publication # FRE144 Koske, Thomas. 2005. Selling your Greenhouse Tomatoes. Louisiana State University Agriculture Center. Griffin Greenhouse & Nursery Supplies, Inc. Posted:
September 29, 2008
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About the Question of the WeekEach "Question of the Week" is an actual research query submitted by a farmer or rancher and answered by an Agriculture Specialist from the USDA-funded ATTRA program, managed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology. For more information on sustainable agriculture, visit our "Publications and Resources" pages (located in the upper-left navigation area of the page), where you will find ATTRA publications and additional Web links. Want to ask your own sustainable agriculture question? Then Ask a Sustainable Agriculture Expert.
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