Advise needed on pig keeping and contract finishing

[brickfarm]

Hi all
Newbie to this need advise on which route to take with pigs. We've been living on a farm for 3 years now and won't be long until we've finished fixing the barns up, we have one barn which has a farrowing house and the other side consists of old milking bays approximately 150ftx150ft and an old cattle barn around 200ft x50ft. My partner has a real passion for pigs and wants to keep pigs but our funding is limited so wondering if anyone's out there who knows of a good firm who pays you to keep pigs as we'd like to do it on a large scale and what they pay etc. We've tried phoning round but can't seem to get anyone who does it except from Ian Mosley but never phoned us back or wondering if it would be better to start up ourselves it's just the price of feeds.
Has anyone ever mixed there own feeds? As my partner was thinking of buying everything in in bulk and mixing his own feeds and buying a Pelletier machine. Just confused on which path to take, and if anyone had gone down this route, or can give advise on which route to take. Obviously which ever route we take we would like to turn over a small profit to make it worth our while.

 

[Newby]

Where abouts are you?

 

[brickfarm]

We're in Barnsley, South Yorkshire

 

[Coximus]

You have the land to spread the manure on? Buyers for the weaners or finishing them yourselves?
Your best buying a pre blended feed in, or co-products. Ive mixing your own unless your finishing thousands of pigs will not even come close to cost effective.
Scale is key, Or outdoor and low costs. Pigs swing wildly and youl need to keep a close eye on costs if your doing it alone.
If your buildings are old, forget keeping B&B pigs for someone else, theirs plenty of brand new empty sheds around at the moment, and plenty being built.

 

[Spud]

We're a Mosey finisher farm, one of the first, started in the late 90's with him, been ont he b&b job since 1990. (Looong before it became fashionable!)

Its not weather related or market related, it turns straw into fym and makes sheds that are 10' to the eaves turn a shilling.

You wont get rich, but on your shed sizes, you'd get about 2000 finishers in, which will bring a few quid in.

Do you have your own straw and land to spread the muck?
Feeders and troughs, and general pig proofing isnt cheap, but not daft if you do it yourself.
Dont underestimate the cost of water, approx 1m3 per pig place per year here iirc
Finishing not especially time consuming, growers a bit more so
Simple loading ramp and races/gates well worth the cost.
Shed/yard lights help too.
Is your premises artic freindly?

Good luck, Spud.

 

[boy jack]

Easey pigs from Suffolk have a large Yorkshire pig scheme with a fieldsman to advise.
They are the best paying every month on the dot and very reliable and straight.