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Bill Smith
02-22-2004 11:37:59
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Re: Tractors vs. Mules in reply to IH230, 02-21-2004 14:10:07
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Farming is sadly going in the direction that it is not how good you farm, it is how many acres you can farm. Farming has got to the point where it is pretty much guaranteed that you will get a minimum amount per acre weather you raise anything or not (government payments, insurance, ext.) the more acres, the more money. What you actually raise, you can add on top of that. Of coarse if you have a descent crop at all, it gets unlikely that you will collect any insurance money. Hard to explain, but under the right circumstances, you can still loose money. Like if you raise just enough that you don't collect insurance, and your raised bushels per acre + goverment payments compared to expense per acre leaves you with a - figure. That is the situation you don't want to see. You raise good crop, you will make money. You have a disaster, and collect insurance and disaster payments you will likely get back to even or a little over. Anyways, bottom line is the number of acres you farm is getting to be more important than how many bushels per acre you actually raise. Farmers are better off to do what ever it takes to farm more acres. Bigger equipment is the first step in doing that. Then buying/renting more ground. Hiring more help. You can hire a semi full time farm hand for 10 to 20 thousand a year. That is just pocket change for somebody that is buying $150,000 tractors. Another example of corporate America making all the money and the good old minimum wage American farm hand getting screwed. By the way, I work for an incorporated farmer, and then small time farm on the side for myself. Probably real stupid on my part but would rather drive tractor for living than work in a factory. I like doing something different every day. Farming, there is never two days the same.
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