Interesting Irish suckler figures

[hillman]

Who's right

Irish confidence in sucklers

Interesting only around 5% thinking off dairying either under 35or over 60 assuming someone coming home
Above couresity off Farmers journal

 

[Walterp]

Are there are actual figures? The first graph is an 'estimate' (what does that mean?) whilst the second graph doesn't convey any figures at all (is there a profit, or a loss, pre-SFP?) and the third is just a snapshot of sentiment.

It could be taken to mean: "some of us did better than last year and some worse, none of us knows our true costs, but some of us are optimistic and some are pessimistic...".

And the journalist got paid for producing that...?

 

[chipsngravy]

Made me smile

I take it with a pinch of salt now anything to do with suckler cost, on here or in papers.


@Steakeater will be along to put Farmers Journal right v soon

 

[JohnGalway]

From the Journal eh, well that's bound to be impartial and lacking spin................

 

[Baling Hay]

Made me smile

I take it with a pinch of salt now anything to do with suckler cost, on here or in papers.


@Steakeater will be along to put Farmers Journal right v soon

No point even providing a counter argument to that poor data. They should hire me to put the industry straight via journalism! I would get a lot of hate mail!!

 

[gone up the hill]

Sounds like to me after looking at the first graph that one of two things ( or both apply ) either most farmers don't have any idea of their REAL cost of production or they are burying their heads in the sand and wont admit the truth to themselves let alone anyone else....

Real terms the figure will be £650+ on average... very very few farms will be able to do it for less if they fully cost it!!

 

[Baling Hay]

Sounds like to me after looking at the first graph that one of two things ( or both apply ) either most farmers don't have any idea of their REAL cost of production or they are burying their heads in the sand and wont admit the truth to themselves let alone anyone else....

Real terms the figure will be £650+ on average... very very few farms will be able to do it for less if they fully cost it!!

100% correct, most farmers are burying their heads in the sand.

 

[Yale]

I'm imagining my sand is a beach in the Bahamas.

 

[hillman]

It was a survey of 200 suck farmers av herd 45 cows on 75 acres !!

Further polls more to be spent on machinery then handling and ground repair /maintenance

 

[SilliamWhale]

farming is generally about being just below the true cost of production isn't it?

 

[james ds]

Made me smile

I take it with a pinch of salt now anything to do with suckler cost, on here or in papers.


@Steakeater will be along to put Farmers Journal right v soon

In that survey the 9.6% are right , they should have had an option of over €900 and see how many would have gone for that figure , Ive costed up everything from the rent value of the land to the diesel used in the jeep and the true cost are over €900/cow , Ive gotten out of sucklers because they simply make no money , and it amazes me the amount of farmers who dont know their costs , if they hadnt got the SFP and the wife working they would be hungry.

 

[Walterp]

In that survey the 9.6% are right , they should have had an option of over €900 and see how many would have gone for that figure , Ive costed up everything from the rent value of the land to the diesel used in the jeep and the true cost are over €900/cow , Ive gotten out of sucklers because they simply make no money , and it amazes me the amount of farmers who dont know their costs , if they hadnt got the SFP and the wife working they would be hungry.

An opportunity cost isn't a cost at all, it's a measure - the means of judging any alternative use for the resource (usually land, but can be labour, machinery, time, etc) that your current venture is utilising.

 

[Willy A]

Sucklers seem to have the largest variation in costs and profit.
These figures don't really mean anything.
No one should care about how the average suckler farmer performs
If you look at figures for top performing and profitable suckler herds then you have something worth analysing.
People not making any money at sucklers need to stop or try and improve their system. Not bury their heads and complain.
Saying sucklers are not profitable is like asking how long is a piece of string
I know dairy men making a good profit and some losing money does that mean on average they all break even.

 

[james ds]

Sucklers seem to have the largest variation in costs and profit.
These figures don't really mean anything.
No one should care about how the average suckler farmer performs
If you look at figures for top performing and profitable suckler herds then you have something worth analysing.
People not making any money at sucklers need to stop or try and improve their system. Not bury their heads and complain.
Saying sucklers are not profitable is like asking how long is a piece of string
I know dairy men making a good profit and some losing money does that mean on average they all break even.

The suckler cow produces on average about €7/800 /yr of product , dairy cows are producing about €3000/ yr of product , the tops could hit over €4000 while the best sucklers might hit €1200 .

 

[Willy A]

Its not about what you produce in either industry. Its about profit per hectare

 

[Baling Hay]

Its not about what you produce in either industry. Its about profit per hectare

Profit per hectare isn't a reliable figure either, you could buy in loads of concentrate and increase stocking rates and end up with a very high profit per hectare.

 

[Chae1]

Profit per hectare isn't a reliable figure either, you could buy in loads of concentrate and increase stocking rates and end up with a very high profit per hectare.

Its profit per head surely?

 

[Baling Hay]

Its profit per head surely?

Thats the way I look at it, but really it is a combination of the two. You need to look at the sustainability of the whole system. A high input dairy in USA could be buying all feed in and have a very high profit per hectare and also a high profit per head, but it is highly unsustainable in both environmental terms shipping feed about, too much manure on a small land base, human food going to animals, higher rates of fertilisers, pesticides, drugs etc. and also economic terms as the farm is completely at the mercy of the commodity markets.

Compare this to a medium input grass based dairy which can produce a higher profit per head in a more sustainable manner.

 

[Walterp]

Its profit per head surely?

The only thing that matters is net worth - if that increases year on year, then the time and working capital is being well-directed; if it's not, then it's not.

Short version: 'business is a great place to make money, but a poor place to invest it; farming is a poor place to make money, but a great place to invest it.' (Walterp).

 

[Poorbuthappy]

Its profit per head surely?

Or profit per labour unit?

Per head isn't very comparable since 1 man may look after 200+ suckler cows or 75 intensive dairy cows. Either could be making a reasonable profit, or a loss.