Wasted Feed.....

[pozarnsk]

While I appreciate where your feelings are on this issue, being from a farming background and living in the middle of it all, let me introduce a dose of realty.

The trend we are seeing over the last 20 yrs is fams are getting bigger, not smaller.(of course) A farmer can no longer "make it" on the farms of the size my father and grandfather had(~1200 acres). By "make it" I mean make a living and feed ones family. Farmers now farm 20-30 quarters of land, and thus need the larger equiptment which makes that possible. Sad? Yes. I drive through rural ND everyday and see just as many empty rotting farmsteads, as I see functioning ones. But this is the realty of the day driven by a free market.

Now you and I may have our little "hobby farms", but do not read too much into it. We like to grow our own food, eggs, meat, etc, but lets not fool ourselves and think we could make a living and support a family this way. And thus we should not frown on those who do farm "for real". Move in next door to them, do your thing, but don't start telling them their business becuase these farmers, have been farming/ranching for generations, care for the land more than you and I combined(becuase it actually sustains them), and frankly they don't need the advice.

Stepping off the soap box.......

-Jared

 

[Davaroo]

Quote:
Your soapbox goes to some of the compromises that must accompany small scale agriculture.
Above, all there has to be an awareness on the part of the consumer. Today, that awareness is towards the megalith producer, feeding a marketing pipeline that delivers the agri-goods to the end consumer. The consumer is just not in tune with local and small.

Frankly, the efforts of these farmers feed millions, where the millions could not, or would not, do so themselves. My hat is off to them and I heartily thank them, one and all, for all they do.

That points to another compromise that is made: The consumer relinquishes his control (and hard work) to another.

Still another is that one must be willing to put some of these farmers out of their livelihood, at least in the short term. The altruism of small scale farming forgets that part - someone will do without in the shift. Revolution is rarely smooth.

I dont see these cultural shifts happening soon, especially not as populations grow. Half the worlds people live in cities, now. Thats official.
They COULD grow their own food on city farms, but they won't, as they pursue their own dreams of success.

Me, Im in favor of a hybridization, since the "all or nothing" concept is a poor answer on both fronts. People should grow some, if not most, of their own food. And agri-biz should continue to prosper and develop better ways of providing the rest. We should march forward together, each doing their part - not opposing one another.

 

[pozarnsk]

The people in the cities, Davaroo, if something were to happen and say law and order suddenly went away, would be dead in a matter of days. People go out to eat at resturants, grocery shop every 3 days, if at all, and basically rely on the market place to take care of them. I lived in Dallas for almost 9 years and fell into this myself. You may have a nice big house in a city, but certainly no means to sustain yourself with a garden, livestock, etc.... Its easy to fall into, but deep down I was never comfortable with it.

I do see a market emerging for $4/dozen eggs, and organic "stuff". I believe it is generally a racket that people waste alot of their money on, but I will definately be taking advantage of it. I saw people in Dallas paying 2-3X/lb for beef that had the label "organic", all the while I've been eating beef from my father -in-law/grandpa raised on ND pasture that is just as "organic". Just didn't have the label from the gov't.

Anyway, the large farm is going nowhere. I do see alot of little hobby farms popping up, but the world needs to eat, and whoever makes the most for the least amount of money, wins. Remember its a global market these days, and there is alot of hungry folks out there, just not in the USA.

-Jared

 

[greyhorsewoman]

This is the best chicken feeder. Had one of these years ago. Sold it when we moved south and were going to be chickenless for an unknown period of time.

Have been thinking about it off and on this past year, wondering if I could build something similar. Very little waste, chickens can't kick stuff in or out. Then a couple of weeks ago, there it is at the local auction. Had to try not to look too excited.

Got it for $25.00 !!!

 

[bulldog-girl]

Hey grey, how does that work? Do they stand on the little wooden things to reach the middle? or do they bend over the wooden thing to reach the middle?

And what are the metall things in the middle that holds the food? Is that to separate the chickens as they are feeding? Could you show a pic form the top? This is a great feeder.

 

[Davaroo]

Quote:
Some good old fashioned stuff right there. They had it worked out didnt they?
Those were for a larger scale production than backyarders are used to.
BTW Ive seen them new somewhere, so they are still around.
Nice vintage find.

 

[sundance]

My feeder is just like Gray horsewomans and Ido not lose any of the laying crumbles. I turn mine out to free graze about 3 oclock and have noticed I only use about half the food I was using.One of my hens hatched 3 chicks and i'm still trying to decide just what they are. l has tail feathers, the other 2 don't,

marrie

 

[Davaroo]

I have a plan for one similar that you can make, with a few improvements. you can get it at TMEN. too, like I did.

 

[greyhorsewoman]

bulldog-girl,

The chickens perch on the wooden roosts and eat out of the tray. The metal across the top is to keep the chickens from sitting in the trough.

Davaroo,

What is TMEN? I'd be interested to find another one if they still sell them somewhere or plans to build one.

 

[chickenannie]

Quote:
Interesting discussion, guys. I love Plamondon. I'm little more than a hobby farmer, but I have friends who are farmers.

But I have a few thoughts about the current state of large-scale agriculture:

a) there's a small-and-local food revolution happening that's beginning to provide an alternative to "large-scale" agribusiness. Though it may seem inconsequential to some, based on what I've seen happening in the past 10 years, it's not only here to stay, but has a momentum that continues to grow.

b) I'm acquainted with several SMALL farms that are profitable when many others said it could not be done. I'm not saying it was easy, but through a variety of means and methods and sweat and tears and years of "figuring out" how to do it differently to make it work and then it can be done.

c) the economic forces making corn and oil expensive are going to have a major effect on the food distribution of "big" farming.

d) large-scale agricultural doesn't include long-term negative effects its having on land and water and air. I'm not just talking about problems associated with monocropping and applying pesticides (for instance, bee/pollination problems). What I'm saying is that land stewardship in farming is everything. Though a tomato can be grown on poor, over-chemicalized land and still look like a tomato, it may lack the vitamins and minerals that well-managed land puts into a tomato. We may be eating our fruits and veggies, but our fruits and veggies may not be giving us the nutrition we need anymore.

Stepping down off the soapbox again! Sorry this all came from a "wasted feed" discussion.