E32-Uncasttf Farming, Saturday, him 2,1984
to get started in dairying
ITHACA, N. Y. Although many
dairy farmers hve been ex
periencing financial difficulty the
past several years, an agricultural
finance expert at Cornell
University says young men and
women are still choosing dairy
farming as a career.
There are many ways to enter
farming, such as renting, buying,
partnership, farm employment,
and part-time fanning. All can be
viable options with a reasonable
chance of success, according to
John Brake who recently com
pleted a study of how New York
State farmers entered the
business.
“Most of the ways to get started
in fanning can be successful if the
farmer is careful,” says Brake, the
W.I. Myers Professor of
Agricultural Finance in the New
York State College of Agriculture
and Life Sciences at Cornell. The
study of 37 farmers was conducted
with research associate Marc A.
Smith.
Innovative options
“Farmers in heavy debt are
usually under the greatest
financial pressure, so beginning
farmers might well consider in
novative options that don’t require
the borrowing of large sums of
money.”
Farmers in the study were not
random selections, but rather were
chosen by Brake and Smith to
represent a wide variety of ways to
enter farming.
Farmer investments in the study
ranged from $12,500 to $697,000 and
averaged $263,387. The number of
cows owned or leased was from 11
to 150; cropping ranged from zero
to 600 acres.
“Getting started in farming is a
complicated, risky process,”
Brake points out. “The margin for
error in beginning farm
management decisions is small.
Make the wrong decision, or even
fail to make an important decision,
and you could be finished. ’ ’
More alternatives
Nevertheless, Brake maintains
that starting and surviving in a
farm business is probably no more
difficult than in many other small
businesses.
“In fact, there are likely more
alternatives for help for those
getting started in farming than for
any other category of
businessmen,” Brake says,
referring to Cooperative Extension
agricultural agents, lenders, other
farmers, friends, and relatives.
It’s still possible
He and Smith did not find a
particular route of entry that
ensures success more than any
other; yet the study did highlight
some common mistakes made by
beginning farmers - mistakes that
sometimes were fatal for the
business.
Common pitfalls
Brake, therefore, is able to
suggest ways to avoid common
pitfalls;
Always have a written con
tract with your partner (s), lan
dlord, lessor, or other business
associates. “Even if your partner
is your father, a written contract is
extremely important to keep terms
clear - for both parents and
children,” Brake says.
Plan well. “Several of our
farmers made the mistake of not
having enough feed for the winter.
By the time they needed it, they
were very short erf cash.”
Carefully check out farm
resources such as land,
machinery, and the health of your
herd before you are committed to
purchasing or renting them.
“Some of our farmers, for
example, bought bred heifers
without haying pregnancy verified
by a veterinarian,” Brake says.
“Others didn’t test their soil. Still
others leased or bought used
machinery without a thorough
check. These can be very serious
mistakes.”
Don’t attribute poor results to
bad luck. “Describing poor
management of the business as
bad luck won’t work. Problems
must be recognized and solutions
found. Most problems are the
result of poor management, un
forseen circumstances, and the
inability to respond in an ap
propriate way,” Brake points out.
Get advice
Get quality advice for all
major decisions. “There is an
abundance of expertise available
to starting farmers. It should be
used,” Brake advises.
Don’t be afraid to be creative
and innovative. “Resourcefulness
in getting control of resources and
in adjusting to and recovering
from farm entry setbacks was a
valuable asset that contributed to
the eventual establishment of
successful farm businesses,”
Brake says.
Although 1984 is another tough
year for dairy farmers, there will
still be some people who want to
start dairying.
“There’s always a turnover of
farmers as some older farmers
retire or die. Some replacement
should occur every year. Just
because a few years are tough
doesn’t mean that young people
shouldn’t start farming.
Sometimes it’s good to start when
things are tough because times can
only get better.”
Some of the farmers Brake and
Smith studied started in 1979, when
times were good, paid top dollar
for land and cows, for example,
and then saw values erode. “One
never knows until several years
later whether a particular year
was a good time to start,” Brake
concludes.
The study report, AE Research
83-86, is available throughout New
York State at numerous county
offices of Cornell Cooperative
Extension, or from the Depart
ment of Agricultural Economics,
Warren Hall, Cornell University,
Ithaca, NY 14853.
USDA cites
weather emergency
COLLEGE STATION,
Tex. Secretary of
Agriculture John R.
Block has announced
emergency measures
implemented by the
U.S. Department of
Agriculture to aid
producers in areas still
affected by a continuing
drought and other ad
verse weather con
ditions.
Block said the
emergency measures
include expanding the
emergency feed
assistance program,
allowing haying and
grazing on cropland
taken out of production
in the 1984 farm
programs, and pro
viding assistance to
livestock producers in
locating hay or other
roughage.
Approval for haying
and grazing privileges
on idled cropland in the
1984 farm programs will
r * *
m!
be given on a county-by
county basis. Producers
should contact their
local Agricultural
Stabilization and
Conservation Service
office for information on
obtaining these
privileges. Block said he
has directed ASCS to
give requests for ap
proval highest priority.
“I would like to see a 24
to 48-hour turnaround in
handling the requests,”
he said.
The agency also is
providing the assistance
in locating hay or other
roughage for livestock
producers to purchase.
All ASCS offices will
maintain updated lists
of producers who have
hay or other roughage
available for sale in
each state. Producers
needing assistance
should contact their
local offices, Block said.
See your nearest
HOLLAfND
Dealer for Dependable
Equipment and Dependable
Service:
Alexandria, PA
Clapper Farm
Equipment
Star Route
814-669-4465
Annville, PA
BHM Farm
Equipment, Inc
R D 1
717-867 2211
Beavertown, PA
B&R Farm
Equipment, Inc
RD 1, Box 217 A
717-658-7024
Belleville, Pa.
IvanJ Zook
Farm Equipment
Belleville, Pa
717-935-2948
Carlisle, PA
Paul Shovers, Inc
35 East Willow Street
717-243 2686
Chambersburg, PA
Clugston
Implement, Inc
R D 1
717-263-4103
Davidsburg, PA
George N Gross, Inc
R D 2, Dover, PA
717 292 1673
Elizabethtown, PA
Messick Farm
Equipment Inc
Rt 283 Rheem’s Exit
717 367 1319
Everett, PA
C Paul Ford & Son
RD 1
814 652 2051
Gettysburg, PA
Ymghng Implements
RD9
717 359 4848
Greencastle. PA
Meyers
Implement’s Inc
400 N Antrim Way
P 0 Box 97
717-597-2176
Grove City, PA
McDowell Farm
Implement Co
Rt 173 North
814 786 7955
Halifax, PA
Sweigard Bros
R D 3, Box 13
717 896-3414
Hamburg, PA
Shartlesville
Farm Service
RD 1, Box 170
215 488 1025
Honey Brook, PA
Dependable Motor Co
East Mam Street
215-273-3131
215-273-3737
Honey Grove, PA
Norman D Clark
& Son, Inc
Honey Grove, PA
717 734-3682
Hughesville, PA
Farnsworth Farm
Supplies Inc
103 Cemetery Street
717 584 2106
Lancaster, PA
L H Brubaker, Inc
350 Strasburg Pike
717 397 5179
Lebanon, PA
Keller Bros
Tractor Co
RD 7, Box 405
717 949 6501
Lititz, PA
Roy A Brubaker
700 Woodcrest Av
717 626-7766
Loysville, PA
Paul Shovers, Inc
Loysville, PA
717-789-3117
Lynnport, PA
KermitK Kistler, Inc
Lynnport, PA
215-298 2011
Martinsburg, PA
Forshey's, Inc
110 Forshey St
814 793-3791
Mill Hall. PA
Paul A Dotterer
RD 1
717 726 3471
New Holland, PA
ABC Groff, Inc
110 South Railroad
717 354-4191
New Park, PA
M&R Equipment Inc
P 0 Box 16
717 993 2511
Oley, PA*
C J Wonsidler Bros
RD 2
215 987-6257
Pitman, PA
Marlin W Schreffler
Pitman, PA
717 648-1120
Quakertown, PA
C J Wonsidler Bros
RD 1
215-536 1935
Quarryville, PA
C E Wiley & Son, Inc
101 South Lime Street
717 786-2895
Ringtown, PA
Rmgtown Farm
Equipment
Ringtown, PA
717 889 3184
Silverdale, PA
I G Sales
Box 149
215 257-5135
Tamaqua, PA
Charles S Snyder, Inc
R D 3
717-386-5945
Troy, PA
The Warner Co
"For You The Farmer”
Troy, PA
717 297-2141
West Chester, PA
M S Yearsley&Son
114 116 East
Market Street
215 696-2990
West Grove, PA
S G Lewis & Son, Inc
R D 2, Box 66
215-869 2214
Churchville, MD
Walter G Coale, Inc
2849-53
Churchville Rd
301 734-7722
Rising Sun, MD
Ag Ind
Equipment Co Inc
1207 Telegraph Rd
301 398 6132
301-658-5568
215 869 3542
Washington, NJ
Frank Rymon & Sons
201 689 1464
Woodstown, NJ
Owen Supply Co
Broad Street &
East Avenue
609 769-0308