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 Welcome to efarmspro.com
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How do very small farms earn a living?
I've often loved the idea of just quitting everything and buying a little piece of land (say 5-10 acres) with a house and maybe and outbuilding or two - and trying to make a modest income from that - but have no idea what small farms do to make money. That's certainly not enough land to say have a dairy farm - or (I'd think) to grow enough of a crop to make much of a profit. I've thought of maybe a small greenhouse type thing - but have no idea who you would sell your product to. Does anyone know anything about this - or have any websites or books to suggest? Thanks very much! |
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It can be done. It is a lot of hard work, and one member of the family will need a job to sustain the family, pay taxes and medical insurance. You will have to live in a manner that farmers existed prior to the advent of electricity; up with the sun, to bed when it gets dark. You will need to get used to using a lot less electricity, knowledge to fix things, or barter to get things fixed. You will need to learn when to plant, what to plant.
Small farm families survive by finding niche markets. You will want to raise certified organic foods and find a restaurant or grocery that will carry your produce. Free range eggs, raw milk and organic produce fetch a premium price, but you will not be driving a lexus, you may be riding in an ox-drawn cart.
If you are serious, get a subscription to the Mother Earth News. You can do an internship at an organic farm in Loveland Colorado and see how it is done, then decide for yourself. http://www.stewardshipcommunity.org/inde... There may be a sustainable farm like this near you to visit. Use your favorite search engine and find out. |
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They supplement their poor crops by planting marijuana or poppies depending on where they live. Small farmers in Peru grow coca instead of food crops and earn a lot more money for their efforts |
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First consider your experience. If you really know what you are doing you may be able to turn a small profit growing ornamental plants with 10 acres. I'd say small farmers (5-10 acres) are only supplimenting their incomes, and feeding their family cheaply. In our local area, we have farmer's markets. For $5.00 per season, a farmer can sell their wares at the market each Saturday morning. Last year in 3 visits, I sold $400.00 worth of perennials that I got by dividing my own garden. I also found work for my teenage boys by offering a planting service to my buyers.
I have quite a lot of experience in the landscape industry in Ga, I have found a backer, and I am in the process of writing a business plan using less than $10,000. For help in writing a bus. plan, I went to the Small Bus. Admin. There is a lot of info there. |
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I make my living growing produce and pasured poultry on less than 4 acres. Neither of us have off farm jobs so it can be done.
We grow a lot of high end crops such as strawberries, melons, raspberries, heirloom tomatoes, etc.. We sell direct to the public via farmers markets, CSA, a farm store and occassionally to high end restaurants.
We work up to 18 hours a day and rarely get a day off during the growing season.
We grow organically but are no longer certified due to the USDA weakening the regs too much. |
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I grew up on a small farm of 32 acres. You need much more than 5-10 acres to be able to live off of. If you are selling traditional crops such as corn and soybeans you would probably need at least 400-500 acres to make a living. With traditional crops you are lucky to make $100 an acre if you have a good crop year. So with traditional crops you'd make about $500 - $1,000 a year. And that's not enough to live on.
I'd recommend you do the farming as a side business at least to start. I'd recommend something that has a higher profit margin per acre such as vegetables, fruits, grapes, or flowers for landscaping. For flowers you would most likely need to get a nursery license. |
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