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Post by George on Nov 17, 2010 11:25:29 GMT -6
Smallest calf crop since 1950. cattletradercenter.com/At-What-Point-Do-We-Run-Out-Of-Cattle/2010-11-15/Article.aspx?oid=1282848&fid=CN-LATEST_NEWS_I'm a little bit frustrated. I need some more leased pasture and I am seeing lots of ungrazed land around. I've been advertising in the local papers and online, yet about the only calls I'm getting are from people who have really small acreage (100 acres or less) even though I plainly state I need acreage of a size that will run 20+ cows. What I'm doing isn't working, so I guess I need to work more on networking. Of course, in this area, I see lots of horses grazing pastures and the dairy industry still has a large presence, though it is declining. A lot of this ungrazed land is more or less just being used for hunting and recreational use. It seems that hunters are finding cows to be a nuisance and the landowners are finding it more lucrative to lease strictly for recreational use. This is the first year I've culled and sold heifers before they were even bred, where in the past, after culling the obvious ones, I've waited until they had their first calf. And I took three bulls to the sale this last week that I should have kept for bull prospects, opting to just keep one rather than reduce my cow/heifer numbers further to accommodate them. Are others seeing a decline in the use of land for cattle that I am seeing here? George |
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Post by Glenn on Nov 17, 2010 11:46:28 GMT -6
Short answer YES.
Hunting use only is the big trend up here.
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Post by guffeygal on Nov 17, 2010 12:00:15 GMT -6
Here in Kansas, we are seeing the same thing. Hunters from as far as Denver, to the deep south are buying up grass land. They pay a lot more than a cattleman could afford to buy it to run cattle on and make a profit.
We too, are in the market for more lease land, but it just isn't available.
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Post by Glenn on Nov 18, 2010 12:02:58 GMT -6
Another corollary to that is what is the population now compared to then?
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Post by George on Nov 23, 2010 8:53:42 GMT -6
I guess I should thank our county appraisal district folks!
Apparently, the need for additional tax money has prompted them to look at folk's ag exemptions and start threatening to remove those where it is obvious that there hasn't been any activity for a while.
I've already picked up one 115 acre place due to their aggressive actions and I'm likely to pick up another 150 acre place this week.
Both are practically next door to my home place.
I'm grateful to get the land to lease, but such aggressive actions really worry me about the effect it may have long term - and what comes next!
George
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Post by Glenn on Nov 23, 2010 9:00:08 GMT -6
Good deal! (short term anyways, I am always leery of the government and their insatiable appetite for money).
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Post by George on Nov 23, 2010 9:15:02 GMT -6
Good deal! (short term anyways, I am always leery of the government and their insatiable appetite for money). I've been wondering why some of these places that have set fallow for so long were suddenly getting brand new perimeter fences. The fence builders are currently having a "boom" here! No livestock on the place by January 1st = no ag exemption. The 115 acre place has a 20 acre coastal field that has been cut and baled every year. In year's past that was enough to exempt the whole place, except for the house. No more! They were going to take the ag exemption off all the rest. Their tax bill would have gone from $200 a year to $4500 a year. I'm sure this is the result of the fact that house prices have dropped and they have been forced to revalue them, resulting in a significant loss in revenue for the taxing entities. But, like you, I'm very leery of what comes next! George |
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Post by Glenn on Nov 23, 2010 9:23:20 GMT -6
Well to take this a tiny step further, if this becomes a national or regional trend how will cattle prices react? Heifers, Bred cows? Somebody will have to stock these places now.
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Post by jayh on Nov 23, 2010 12:45:03 GMT -6
We cant buy or rent any pasture here. ground sold for 5400.00 per acre last week and seems like no end in sight. All pasture that is tillable is being used for row crop. Crp has jumped from 6?.00 and acre to 115.00 I think, so that groung that is rough is enrolled in that. 16.6 acres with house that has not been lived in for 10 years and a cattle shed and 3.5 acre lake from the 16.6 brought 63,000.00 I thought they had lost their mind.
Old man that I bought a couple of bulls from said if anyone wants a bull they better get it by the end of the year from him because they are going up 1000.00 Jan 1st ( feed cost and no bulls around)
He priced me some heifers and I passed on them ( 3,000.00 each )
Has another older gentleman price me reg cows ( open ) at 2500.00 each.
Guess I better keep my own.
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Post by Glenn on Nov 23, 2010 13:28:48 GMT -6
I had a call last night that offered to buy all my registered spring born heifer calves at $1000 sight unseen (but with my assurance they were "good"). I passed. I can't replace them for that.
Interesting times ahead, I think.
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Post by rockmillsfarm on Nov 23, 2010 17:58:29 GMT -6
That's not happening around here yet, although things have changed a little. They've started cracking down on the use of farm tags, as to be for farm use, nothing smaller than a 3/4 ton pickup.
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Post by rockmillsfarm on Nov 23, 2010 18:01:34 GMT -6
We cant buy or rent any pasture here. ground sold for 5400.00 per acre last week and seems like no end in sight. All pasture that is tillable is being used for row crop. Crp has jumped from 6?.00 and acre to 115.00 I think, so that groung that is rough is enrolled in that. 16.6 acres with house that has not been lived in for 10 years and a cattle shed and 3.5 acre lake from the 16.6 brought 63,000.00 I thought they had lost their mind. Old man that I bought a couple of bulls from said if anyone wants a bull they better get it by the end of the year from him because they are going up 1000.00 Jan 1st ( feed cost and no bulls around) He priced me some heifers and I passed on them ( 3,000.00 each ) Has another older gentleman price me reg cows ( open ) at 2500.00 each. Guess I better keep my own. $63,000 might make the down payment on the same place here. |
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Post by Glenn on Nov 23, 2010 18:07:51 GMT -6
It is all relative. Land is just too high for cows just about anywhere. It is a whole lot cheaper here but you need so many acres to run a pair that in the end we are in about the same boat as you farm belt guys.
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