Brace yourselves, feed prices are going to rise!!!!

[pips&peeps]

You could consider getting a bunch of chicken owners together to split that ton of food also.

Me and my friend already buy it by the ton. I get a ton and she usually gets 2. They still don't want to give us a deal.

I have about 150 chickens and she has around 300. I may be downsizing soon. I already ordered 50 chicks, so extra roosters and old hens not laying will have to go.​

 

[KKluckers]

Quote:
I thinking about doing that. I have some people that live close by (relatives) that have chickens.

 

[silkiechicken]

I'd be down for a quarter ton... but problem is... it would be in 4 types of feed and getting car to carry it all would cost more in the long run. LOL

 

[professor_yellow]

Quote:
Exactly what I am thinking. There is enough small flock owners here in any locale. One ton is only 40 bags. I go through 50 pounds of layer pellets a week as it is, and another 50 of turkey grower and another of all purpose. this is with 13 pekind and layer ducks, never mind the 25 Black Broilers that are coming in a couple of weeks. If you buy it fresh you still have fresher quality than the feed stores in the winter anyway.

There are a variety od small mills, and it just would depend on feed composition and production quality and control. feed stores arent the only ones who can have a feed blended.

Like to throw this out there for some serious discussion.

 

[NCrooster]

I'm just reading this post. My local feed store quoted me a price yesterday of $184.00 for 1/2 ton of laying pellets. That is about $9.20 a bag 4 of us are going to go in together and get some this week.

 

[LinckHillPoultry]

my goodness. I think it's time to start making my own food. haha.

 

[mothergoose]

I hope it does'nt get much worse. Layer is already over $10.00/50lbs and starter is over $12.00/50lbs. The birds are eating us out of house and home now!
Christie

 

[pips&peeps]

So here's another good one for you all to ponder. I called a feed store in Bellingham, WA, which I would consider a place where prices would be high.

Anyway, their purina layena pellets are $3.00 per bag cheaper than what I can get here in Spokane....... The mill is in Spokane that supplies this feed and it must be shipped across the State to those stores over there.

The cheapest we found by the ton is $417.00, that's $10.42 per bag by the ton, which is better than $13.99 per bag, but not much.

I am looking into a feed distributor in Oregon. They may be able to get it from my mill for cheaper. If they go for it, I will just have to pick it up. Won't they be surprised.

 

[silkiechicken]

I wonder too though, that if the stock in different stores are from a different order from when the feed was cheaper, and so they are still selling it cheaper because they got it for less, and when they get new stock, the price will be higher? I know one month to the next, our co op has different prices depending on the cost of the order they got?

For the small quantities I get, I can't justify saving 3 a bag if it costs me 20 in gas to get there and back plus the cost of maintence and time with the car. My last tank was 50+ bucks.... at 20mpg, it gets expensive to drive distances... and I can only put at most 6 bags at once in the car!

 

[Big Spur Gamecock]

Hey Y'all, Maybe if everyone calls their local Walmart and ask the manager to start carrying the various forms of Chicken feeds they could get the price breaks that individuals can't. All our Walmart's have huge pet supply dept's. but do not stock chicken feeds. That could change if WE ALL start a writing campaign asking for it.
I will do it here at the new Super Wally world in Walterboro, SC and see what can be done. I would think that if we emphasized we wanted it for our pet chickens, they would look at it differently than if you asked for livestock feed. It's the volume, as has been spoken about in previous post that get the prices down.
This could be a project worth the effort!
Last time I went into a Tractor Supply store they had fairly decent prices but the closest store to me is 80 miles round trip and at 14 mpg in my ol' Dodge, well it adds up to no savings. We have a grocery store here in town that carries a local mill's various feeds and so that is where I usually buy my 50 lb. sacks. I just bought two 50 lb sacks of scratch for $9.85 each and the layer pellets are up to $13.86 each. Big jump from just a month ago, Scratch was $6.95 and layer pellets were $7.85. I thought we had it bad here until I read what some of y'all were paying around the nation!

Let's get that letter writing campaign to home offices and phone calls to the local managers started and see what we might be able to accomplish.

Take care now my fellow chicken ranchers,