How do I find 4h marketing information?

[ccmarie]

We are looking at getting a five-acre property in another year-ish. My husband's insisting that we have a project that would actually pay for itself, so I'm looking into ideas. Our area is very active with 4h livestock, so I'm trying to find some kind of animal I can breed and tap into that market. I'm having trouble finding out the different requirements for 4-h, though-- such as which animals need to be purebred, which need certain tattoos/tags, etc. I'd particularly like to know about poultry (I'm raising mixbreed chickens and muscovy ducks right now), goats (I have a little experience with dairy goats), and cows. Thanks.

 

[res]

I am involved in the 4-H livestock program here in Maryland, and was involved with it in Oklahoma as well.

I can tell you that we do not have to purchase animals from a certain breeder. The 4-H members are free to purchase them from whomever they want, wherever they want.

The goats do have to have a premise ID/scrapie tag from the breeder, or I have seen members order their own. As far as 4-H tags, those are put on when the animal is weighed and tagged for it's first 4-H show season. So our beef project had to be purchased prior to December 10, 2013, and was weighed/tagged at a county wide event on February 2nd. The goats had to be purchased prior to May 10th, and were weighed/tagged on May 22nd. The reason for the weigh-ins is to calculate the rate of gain prior to the shows. Each animal will be weighed again as it enters the show grounds.

In Oklahoma, the club traveled as a group 3 states away and purchased ALL their market animals (beef, swine, goats and lambs) from the same farm. The club leader thought this leveled the playing field by having all the animals purchased from the same place. Not so sure I agree with his tactic.

Here in MD, I can tell you that *most* of the goats get purchased from other club members who have made a name for themselves breeding and selling stock. Price is a HUGE factor. You might not be making a lot of $ by selling to 4-H kids. We all have to submit project reports, and the goal is to maximize our profits. The purchase price of the animal is a huge part of the profit. Once an animal has been tagged with a 4-H tag, it cannot be shown in an open class. Thus, it is limited to the premiums paid by the 4-H show, which are not much.

I think you'd do best by talking to you county extension office. That is usually where 4-H is based out of. They should be able to hook you up with the answers to your questions. But I don't think this venture will be one you can retire on...

 

[ccmarie]

Thanks, I'll look at that. I'm not trying to get rich, we're just hoping that our costs and profits will break even.

 

[res]

You might break even.

There are classes for purbred/registered animals, but most market classes also come in a "crossbred" version. So you don't necessarily have to invest $ in keeping up and registering stock. Market animals are generally sold at the end of the show. Champions are required to be sold. So papers aren't that important, it is more about the meat on the animal.

If you are selling breeding animals to be shown, I have only seen "purebred" classes for those. So intact males, breeding females, etc. that you plan on marketing to 4-Hers would probably benefit from being papered.

As far as chickens, the only *requirement* that I know of is for the Broiler Project. We *have* to use Cornish Rocks. We cannot use any other breed.

Cost wise, here in MD, most of the 4-Hers paid between $75-150 for their market wethers. They pay more for breeders.

Beef cattle prices vary A LOT, but 4-H requires the cattle to weigh 1200lbs to be shown as a market animal. So that pretty much gives you a narrow window for date-of-birth and breed, because it takes a while to get to that weight, and not all breeds can do it within the timeframe allowed.

I'd also suggest attending every local 4-H livestock show that you can get to. Ask questions, meet people... 4-H is always looking for volunteers, too. They will train you and get you official before they turn you loose with the kids, but it is a great way for you to develop a base for your market!

 

[buckbye]

Sorry to threadjack....So wait....there's 4-H...for adults? What exactly do they do? I was never involved in anything like that. Sounds interesting, but the premise ID/NAIS, ick. That seems terribly coercive.

 

[res]

Sorry to threadjack....So wait....there's 4-H...for adults? What exactly do they do? I was never involved in anything like that. Sounds interesting, but the premise ID/NAIS, ick. That seems terribly coercive.

No, 4-H is still for kids. Adults (parents, aged-out 4-H members, anybody really...) can be active in 4-H as volunteers. Volunteers can help lead clubs, teach members, assist in classes/camps, etc. The kids are the only ones who get to compete. But us parents get pretty involved in the process.

Premise ID's and tags are not a horrible thing or coercive. It is a means of tracking livestock and providing accountability. It ensures that the animal the 4-Her started the project with is the animal they are competing with.

 

[Silver Silkie]

I am currently a second year 4-H member in the sate of Texas. Here we do things a little bit differently than most states. (Where I live there are a lot of people who donate thousands of dollars for youth projects....) We are only allowed to raise market animals. Last year I did Broilers and next year I hope to start some goats. In Gillespie county, we have a 4-H youth livestock show and premium auction every year in January. Now to define premium auction. A premium auction is an auction where the animal is not sold, it is just a bunch of people bidding on who gets to give the kid the most prize money. I 'sold' my broilers this year for $1,500 and it cost me about $200 to raise them. The extra money goes to my savings account for college.
Goats and cattle is a different story. Here we raise only Boers for goats and breeds such as Hereford, Angus, Brangus, Brahmans, and such for cattle. (Steers for cattle and wethers for goats) If you go to your local extension office, they ussually have a person who specializes in certain projects and could help you find a good animal for your project. You can also get a decent animal at the local auctions. I have heard stories of people buying a wether at the stock auctions for about a hundred bucks and then taking it to the youth stock show and winning Grand Champion, along with $4,000, with it. The best way to buy a large stock animal is to go to a few shows and talk to people. They can often hook you up to people who would be willing to sell you a few animals for a good price.
I don't know how it is where you live, but here, the extension office makes a list of people who order their broiler chicks and how many they want and then they go down to College Station and pick them up from Texas A&M and then we go to pick them up at the office.
Hope this helps.

 

[WallabyOfChaos]

As res said, talk to your local extension agent. Different states and regions within those states will have different projects available for the kids. We are in Texas too, and our county doesn't have a 4-H horse show but the next county over does (everybody gets to show at the District show though). Some counties have breeding animal classes, and others just do market classes. Your extension agent can let you know what projects are available in your area, and what projects are in demand.

If you are looking to breed 4-H show animals, I would suggest choosing a species which has a strong commercial market value. Sheep or goats would be my pick if I were in your situation. They are a good fit for small acreage, and what ever doesn't sell as a show prospect can usually be sold locally to fatten for someone else's freezer or taken to a sale. The commercial sheep and goat market is good right now too, and is likely to stay good for a long time.