Lesson 2: Defining Your Farm
BEGINNING TO DEFINE YOUR FARM
This pastured poultry and/or pork enterprise might meet some of the or all of the following goals:
- Quick ROI and cash flow to fund other enterprises.
- Learn basic animal management skills.
- Allows you to farm full-time faster.
- Gives us quick entry into marketing streams.
- An opportunity to build brand image with an easy to master product.
- Provides an opportunity to build a customer base to sell our beef to in the long term.
In other words, some enterprises may be a means to an end. And this is completely fine so long as you define and understand that upfront.
Questions to understand and answer when designing an enterprise to meet your context:
- What are you most passionate about raising?
- What unfair advantage does your land have in terms of production (land cost, grass, tree crops, infrastructure)?
- What unfair advantage does your farm have in terms of geography (sales)?
- What type of initial investment capital are you willing to make? Note that this one area alone may dictate your very entrance into farming!
Try and focus on where these answers overlap (advantages, passion, interests) and focus your energy there if at all possible after assessing your local market. If it isn't possible now, how do you begin to focus your energy on the enterprise you cherish most within 2 years? 3 years? 5 years?
Once you have a focus, study that enterprise in ALL aspects:
- Physical
- Mental
- Marketing
- ROI
- Capital investment needs (production cost analysis)
- Infrastructure (indirect cost analysis)
- Land requirements
- Time requirements
If you aren't convinced that this is for you (or even if you are) then volunteer to work on a farm with this enterprise currently running. Make certain it is for you as best you can before delving in beyond your financial comfort level.
BEGINNING TO DEFINE YOUR FARM
This pastured poultry and/or pork enterprise might meet some of the or all of the following goals:
- Quick ROI and cash flow to fund other enterprises.
- Learn basic animal management skills.
- Allows you to farm full-time faster.
- Gives us quick entry into marketing streams.
- An opportunity to build brand image with an easy to master product.
- Provides an opportunity to build a customer base to sell our beef to in the long term.
In other words, some enterprises may be a means to an end. And this is completely fine so long as you define and understand that upfront.
Questions to understand and answer when designing an enterprise to meet your context:
- What are you most passionate about raising?
- What unfair advantage does your land have in terms of production (land cost, grass, tree crops, infrastructure)?
- What unfair advantage does your farm have in terms of geography (sales)?
- What type of initial investment capital are you willing to make? Note that this one area alone may dictate your very entrance into farming!
Try and focus on where these answers overlap (advantages, passion, interests) and focus your energy there if at all possible after assessing your local market. If it isn't possible now, how do you begin to focus your energy on the enterprise you cherish most within 2 years? 3 years? 5 years?
Once you have a focus, study that enterprise in ALL aspects:
- Physical
- Mental
- Marketing
- ROI
- Capital investment needs (production cost analysis)
- Infrastructure (indirect cost analysis)
- Land requirements
- Time requirements
If you aren't convinced that this is for you (or even if you are) then volunteer to work on a farm with this enterprise currently running. Make certain it is for you as best you can before delving in beyond your financial comfort level.