Well, it’s that time of year again.The time when I get a cold shock of reality and look back at all the records I kept, determining the profitability (or lack thereof) of all the time and money invested into raising our own food.
As I look over the numbers and see where we’ve made losses and gains throughout the year, I have to bear in mind the true costs and profits of having a homestead.
Last year we set some goals to reduce costs and possibly improve yields. One was to reduce feed costs by 40%. Well, thanks to the drought THAT didn’t happen. We’re still paying an exorbitant for hay for starters. Add to that, we are paying more per pound for hog & chicken feed – but that’s a good thing really, because last year’s prices reflect industry standard feed and we were blessed this year to find a local source for GMO-free feed for our livestock. Feeding GMO-laden feed was never something I was comfortable with. I feel like it’s a giant science experiment and our animals are the lab rats (and ourselves a little further up the food chain), but that way is preferable to whatever is in the supermarket simply because of the improved quality of life I know our food has.
Other goals-
–Get produce cast-offs to supplement feeding. We have been doing this since late summer and while I don’t know if it is reducing our grain inputs (it’s mostly being fed to the hogs and those numbers are still out), it does give the livestock something to look forward to each day. We were able to get a few truckloads of pumpkins in November. In late fall we passed on the pomice from the cider mill since there was no logistical way for us to get it here and unload it. And daily, we collect 2 trash cans full of produce cast-offs from a local grocery store.
–Greater predator control. Obviously, any chickens the critters are eating, we’re not. So this was a big goal. Many coons and possums died as a result of this goal. We had less than a handful of losses due to predators this year. Sadly, that triumph is not reflected in our stats since a third of the flock was lost to a huddle (human error). And a couple dozen were lost because of getting held up in shipping over Easter. (Lesson: Do not purchase chicks from the feed store if Easter is early in the year. This year Chick Day is the first week of April and we are passing on them, shopping elsewhere.)
– Reduce the price per pound of our produce by 25-50%. A 45% reduction in the price per pound!! And that with having to battle all of those bugs and everything! I’m incredibly excited about this blessing.
Other notes:
– We did return to the wood chips deep litter method for the chicken coop this year and that fact is reflected in the cost.
– This year, we have had 6 heritage turkeys sharing the laying hens feed bill. Since, unlike broad-breasted turkeys, they still fit into the coop, we can’t force them to forage for 100% of their feed like we could the broad-breasted ones. There is no way of knowing who is getting what, but I’m sure that has had an impact on the feed bill. Since they’re eating with the layers all other turkey costs are included there, like poults.
-Technically, we didn’t raise hogs for 2012 butchering, so all costs incurred last year will be attributed to this year’s analysis.
– 2010 Total Yield was 2378 pounds; 2011 was 2482 pounds; 2012 was 2433 pounds. That’s an pretty even average I’d say of 2431 pounds per year. With all the variables each year- beef one year, a glut of zucchinis one year, none the next, no hogs this year, etc…. I count it a testimony to God’s provision from one year to the next. It’s like the ultimate CSA box- you just can’t be sure what you’re going to get.
{2012 Homestead Yields}
Click images to enlarge
{2012 Cost Analysis}
Broilers: Increased by $1.49/lb.
Dairy: Decreased by $.42/gallon
Garden: Decreased by $.91/lb.
Layers: Increased by $1.32/dozen
{2012 Cost Analysis Breakdown}
(2011 Cost Analysis Breakdown)
~Garden~
Seeds & Seed Starting-$348.17
Plants-$118.08
Soil Amendment-$51.53
Pest Control-$3.94
Equipment-$197.98
~Layers~
Chicks-$170.81
Feed-$343.19
Bedding- $89.18
Equipment- $132.36 (most of which was a heated waterer for about $75)
~Broilers~
Chicks-$224.90
Feed-$476.08
Pest Control-????
~Dairy Cow~
Feed- $1976.20 (hay, grain, minerals)
Milk Supplies- $102.10
Equipment- $59.20
Medical- $30.00
And for something new this year, I started to keep a target goal & inventory sheet for the pantry. It’s not a perfect record and I’m hoping to make improvements and additions this year. One thing I’d like to do is get a pressure canner and decrease our dependency on the freezer for things other than meat. Right now I have a large chest freezer (like the biggest you can buy, whatever that is) and 3 little cube ones.
{2012 Pantry Inventory}
Hopefully, by sharing this others, can get a more realistic goal set for themselves this year. Obviously, we all hope to do better than this, but I think that by not setting standards too, too high discouragement will be reduced and others looking to getting into homesteading will stay the course and find themselves pursuing a new, satisfying way of life, learning new skills, and most importantly how to more fully rely upon the Lord who will provide!
Quinn, you’ll like the freedom of having canned things instead of frozen! I like canning so it isn’t that big of a burden till about September :o) when everything needs canned at once. Some advice is to freeze things that you don’t get to can immediately and wait till the dead of winter to finish canning. It helps break it up when harvest is coming too fast AND it helps warm the house. I especially like canning meats and soups since they make a super easy meal for the kids to prepare when I am busy. I can’t wait to see the numbers on the hogs! Thanks for keeping records AND sharing them with us!!
You’re welcome SarDee! I think that I’ll like having meals canned up, ready to go too. I’m so terrible at remembering to defrost freezer meals. (Case in point, today’s is still a brick). We are too close to town to resist the temptation of just grabbing a bite out on those nights I’m forgetful. I looked over our finances last year and found I could easily pay for a top of the line pressure cooker for the cost of dining out in 2012!! Definitely something I plan to work on this year! Thanks for the encouragement to that end as well as the tip 🙂
Nick says: “Quinn, this is my favorite post each year. Well done!”
I love reading this post every year! I especially like the pantry inventory sheet. That would be quite useful when putting up. I am forever calling my neighbor, or vice-versa to remember what we did the year before. Now if only I could be better with the record keeping. This is such a good time to sit down and figure it all out before spring planting begins. You will love having a pressure canner! I actually have two, but only because my husband purchased the first one and in his usual way bought the biggest one. 🙂 The only problem with that is it takes forever to get up to pressure! So I then purchased a few years later the medium sized one that just holds 7 quarts or smaller. It’s so much faster and I have the benefit of using both, although I can almost do two runs to the time it takes to do one with the biggest size. My husband doesn’t like to go without his green beans. 🙂
Canning meat wasn’t something I ever thought I’d use, but it is so handy! Especially for last minute meals. Open a jar of canned chicken for a chicken salad or for adding to rice or another dish. Hamburger wasn’t something I’d probably do again, though. Just thought I’d pass along that info. I was surprised how quickly we went through our canned chicken the first time I canned it!
Love this! Last year these lists/cost analysis were a big go-to while determining our springtime goals.
About predators and our fowl: When we first started up our chickens we had guinea fowl. Our dog handles the ‘possums and the racoons but occasionally a fox would make show. I did not make the connection until a few weeks ago that the fox hadn’t seriously been a problem with chickens until we got rid of the guineas. We lost over half of our flock each year due to the fox. I’m hoping to try the guineas out again – all the “alarming” that they do may have been for a good reason and I didn’t know!
I am always interested in seeing these posts of yours. We were talking the other day about if we could homestead/farm full time ~ not here, we’d have to move where we are debt free. It’s alright until you have to bring into account what happens if there is a drought. We’ve had a ridiculously dry year this past year & there is very little feed on the ground & for the first time I’d had to buy hay in for our cows. Yes, we do have some of our own hay ( although the sheep are eating that quickly), but I wanted a more nutrient dense hay for Bessy who is still feeding her enormous calf. These costs certainly add up & I need to be more dilligent with actually keeping record of them associated with the animal ( I do the accounts for the farm, so there is always record, but it’s not the same). I guess no matter what the cost we need to remember that we really aren’t doing this to save money ~ it’s more about the quality of the food we are putting into our bodies.
Have a wonderful day ~ I’d better go & get some work done ( I have a pile of ironing…)!
Blessings
Renata:)
Just found your site and will go through it later on. I justed wanted to give my immediate appreciation for going through the costs so homestead dreamers have a real world idea of the numbers involved. Good or bad, its all helpful.