Hay Farmers getting out of farming

[sree251]

Sorry brother. I hate reading that. I hope you can find a way….
I found a way to make more non-farm income, until I could get tonnage up a lot.

Great suggestion. What kind of non-farm income?

 

[Texasmark]

I can envision the difficulty to make a profit in hay business with the high cost of repair parts,fuel,fertilizer not to mention the high price of farm tractors/equipment. Then throw in the lack of & low prospects of rain where I reside. If I had 2 functioning brain cells I'd sell every head of cattle I own but NO I'll wait until the price of live cattle bottoms out.

I hear you and you ought to know. Its been dry up here for 2 months now and you watch, this spring, when it's time to get your hay up it will be a Monsoon, as has been the case up here the last 2 years.

 

[Hay Dude]

Great suggestion. What kind of non-farm income?

Heres what I did. Im not saying itll work for you. Knowing I had to sustain with the equipment I had invested into, I put it to use doing a LOT of field and pasture mowing. Went to local land conservancies and accumulated contracts over one winter about 15 years ago. Once I got my first couple contracts, took out a small loan to buy (2) 15’ mowers. A good decision as those mowers made me extra income cutting their fallow farmlands they dont want crops on or in between hay mowings.
I also offered them snow plowing of their access roads, which again used a tractor to plow them, then switched to a truck for a number of years.
I was born into a construction family and had a knack for masonry and carpentry. I still do some of that, but would like to exit that business for good soon.
You are going to have a tough time making a living unless you are a good size operation, without another source of off farm income.

 

[Hay Dude]

It doesn’t HAVE to utilize your equipment, but thats the way I went.
How about getting your CDL and try some part time truck driving? Pay is pretty good. I did some of that, too.

 

[sree251]

Heres what I did. Im not saying itll work for you. Knowing I had to sustain with the equipment I had invested into, I put it to use doing a LOT of field and pasture mowing. Went to local land conservancies and accumulated contracts over one winter about 15 years ago. Once I got my first couple contracts, took out a small loan to buy (2) 15’ mowers. A good decision as those mowers made me extra income cutting their fallow farmlands they dont want crops on or in between hay mowings.
I also offered them snow plowing of their access roads, which again used a tractor to plow them, then switched to a truck for a number of years.
I was born into a construction family and had a knack for masonry and carpentry. I still do some of that, but would like to exit that business for good soon.
You are going to have a tough time making a living unless you are a good size operation, without another source of off farm income.

Good Lord! You are one hell of a survivor. You are impressive.

 

[Hay Dude]

Good Lord! You are one hell of a survivor. You are impressive.

I did what I had to do to thrive.

 

[bmaverick]

It doesn’t HAVE to utilize your equipment, but thats the way I went.
How about getting your CDL and try some part time truck driving? Pay is pretty good. I did some of that, too.

Even a CDL Class-B at times can pay more than Class-A across country. Just got to find the niche to drive for the right firm. Much of the time Class-B drivers work close to home anyways.

 

[Hay Dude]

Even a CDL Class-B at times can pay more than Class-A across country. Just got to find the niche to drive for the right firm. Much of the time Class-B drivers work close to home anyways.

Yeah! I drove a tri for years on weekends and filled in for guys when they wanted vacation. Even worked as a doorman at bars lol

 

[ultrarunner]

I hear you and you ought to know. Its been dry up here for 2 months now and you watch, this spring, when it's time to get your hay up it will be a Monsoon, as has been the case up here the last 2 years.

A couple years ago I was in WA state passed by a hay broker and saw tractor trailer after tractor trailer with TX plate loaded with hay...

 

[bmaverick]

A couple years ago I was in WA state passed by a hay broker and saw tractor trailer after tractor trailer with TX plate loaded with hay...

After the raging fires out west in 2016 and 2017, semis would load up with those huge square bales in KY and TN, then drive them westward where the fires took out so much pasture and hay fields. The livestock had nothing to eat. Well, in TN now had very little for it's livestock.

In reality of it all, it's just going to get worse.