20/21 March year end cash flow.

[DairyGrazing]

How have peoples costs gone this year? Cash flow/budget has gone very well here but holding on to cash has been tricky gobbled up by one offs, sheds and big increases in stock numbers.

Nearly all of ours have dropped including labour which is historically very high for us. Big jump has come in contracting and bedding. The wheat grew a faction of the amount of straw it should have done so that explains that. I've been through all the contracting invoices and its nothing in-particular just lots of little things chipping away. Help moving muck, straw, bales etc

Not sure how you can reduce some of them take spraying for example. £3000 total £6 an acre 500ish acres total mix of wheat maize and grassland. Is it worth taking that in house? Would probably gain some yield from timeliness but the cost to buy a sprayer and the drama I doubt it would be worth it.

Easiest way to save is by not doing it in the first place I suppose.

I'll post more in depth numbers when I get them back.

 

[Beef farmer]

Fixed costs are running away. Need to really question more things now. A stronger milk price could catch more people out than an average one. Be no end of extras being bought the last few years.

 

[Beef farmer]

As for your spraying..... you got a pa 1-6? Mot sprayer and then the time to do it. Easier things to save than that id guess

 

[Will Blackburn]

If it’s a job you like doing, why not. I just done 20 years spraying with a £4K sprayer, looking forward to the next 20 years with a £13k (lots of toys and capacity) machine.

 

[Rossymons]

On my patch it would seem as business as normal. Production has been reasonable across the board and most of my guys have enough forage in the bank. A couple have been caught out with high straw and latterly high fert prices but certainly not all.

I think any issues will arrive later in the year - there is always the issue of going early or going late with 1st cut. I have seen plenty of light crops already but at least theres is in. Certainly lots of discussion around feed prices too. Lots of maize and wholecrop has been drilled in very good conditions so that might take care of that.

Spring breeding starts this week and so more customers coming on for the season - always nice to return to farms and see what has changed in the last 12 months as well as bringing new ones on and their points of view too. Down with me grazing grass is in very short supply - that feed has to be replaced somehow.

Staffing wise teams are settled and working very well which is a huge saving in itself.

 

[DairyGrazing]

As for your spraying..... you got a pa 1-6? Mot sprayer and then the time to do it. Easier things to save than that id guess

If it’s a job you like doing, why not. I just done 20 years spraying with a £4K sprayer, looking forward to the next 20 years with a £13k (lots of toys and capacity) machine.

I just picked that as an example really but the herdsman has some of his tickets and is really keen to do the spraying. So will probably get him one.

 

[Cowman31]

Biggest costs here are Tea bags and coffee, staffing wise, long standing, happy and paid on the button. Cows out 11 months of the year so cost still low and historically have been

 

[DairyGrazing]

Fixed costs are running away. Need to really question more things now. A stronger milk price could catch more people out than an average one. Be no end of extras being bought the last few years.

More litres is the only way I've ever controlled fixed costs. Doing a bit on labour with a new parlour and auto scrappers etc Did you find your scrappers helped this winter? What hasn't helped us is taking on 100 acres from next door that hasn't really given us any more milk. It will do going forward but has been a hindrance so far.

New tractors flying out to dairy farmers round here now muller have put a penny on

 

[DairyGrazing]

Biggest costs here are Tea bags and coffee, staffing wise, long standing, happy and paid on the button. Cows out 11 months of the year so cost still low and historically have been

You can escape input inflation tho.

 

[lady muck]

More litres is the only way I've ever controlled fixed costs. Doing a bit on labour with a new parlour and auto scrappers etc Did you find your scrappers helped this winter? What hasn't helped us is taking on 100 acres from next door that hasn't really given us any more milk. It will do going forward but has been a hindrance so far.

New tractors flying out to dairy farmers round here now muller have put a penny on

Feed cost price rises more than cancel out any rises unless you have fixed in with a buying group or similar.

 

[pappuller]

More litres is the only way I've ever controlled fixed costs. Doing a bit on labour with a new parlour and auto scrappers etc Did you find your scrappers helped this winter? What hasn't helped us is taking on 100 acres from next door that hasn't really given us any more milk. It will do going forward but has been a hindrance so far.

New tractors flying out to dairy farmers round here now muller have put a penny on

That's generally how the hamster wheel works tho, keep running faster to stopn falling off.
fully agree that you either reduce your fixed costs by not doing stuff which generally ends up biting you further down the track or push for more efficiencies which usually means more litres/kg to dilute the costs down.
we are in a similar position here, understocked at the moment but a 4th robot going in later this year which will add a fair chunk of borrowing to the business but will dilute costs down