What to do?

[tex452]

Not true
2020 corn averaged 3.64 bushel for the year
2022 average 6.94 up 90.6% from 2020

2017 Trump's first year corn averaged 3.62
2021 Biden's first year 5.75 up 58% over 2020

What did fertilizer and fuel do?
High corn prices isn't a good thing for a lot of us.

 

[Ky hills]

Believe me those chicken farmers who practice good bio-security are grinning from ear to ear.

They may be, I'm talking about me and other small time people with chickens. Even with selling a few dozen a week it just pays about half of the feed. Layer crumbles $16 per 50#.

 

[farmerjan]

Nothing farmers are selling is going up enough to match inflation

Especially if you are looking at $60-80,000 for a pickup... I bought one new truck after I got divorced.... 1979 2 wd drive Ford Supercab... "mint green " left over when the 80's came out... my dad called it the peppermint patty.... Paid a little over 3,000 for it and financed.... my little plymouth duster just couldn't haul all the hay I needed for my cows and horse back then (ha ha)

 

[gcreekrch]

I just bought 3 metric tons of bagged, loose, cobalt salt. 55 lb bags…. $16.85 per bag. A year ago they were $9+.

 

[BFE]

Not true
2020 corn averaged 3.64 bushel for the year
2022 average 6.94 up 90.6% from 2020

2017 Trump's first year corn averaged 3.62
2021 Biden's first year 5.75 up 58% over 2020

Now tell us about the inflation % of those corn inputs.

 

[Silver]

I just bought 3 metric tons of bagged, loose, cobalt salt. 55 lb bags…. $16.85 per bag. A year ago they were $9+.

I have been paying $601.13 per tonne for TM 120. I'm due for another pallet in the next few days so I may be in for a surprise.

 

[farmerjan]

Feed here that was $350 a ton delivered bulk in the feed bin... just went to $429 on the last delivery. All in the last month.....

 

[tex452]

Now tell us about the inflation % of those corn inputs.

Farmers probably done better at $3.62/ because of inflation.

 

[kenny thomas]

Feed here that was $350 a ton delivered bulk in the feed bin... just went to $429 on the last delivery. All in the last month.....

Here 16% was $350 delivered last week. I'm not sure if that's profitable.

 

[1982vett]

I just want to know...is it going to rain in a fashion that will sustain forage growth?

It's been fairly warm around here. Got a good shower of rain this morning. When the sun came out nice and bright, you could almost see the world turn green. The cows were just about as giddy as they could be but seem a bit befuddled as to why they they have to work at getting any of it. It is quite short and they aren't liking the hay quality they are getting all that much.

 

[Dave]

They may be, I'm talking about me and other small time people with chickens. Even with selling a few dozen a week it just pays about half of the feed. Layer crumbles $16 per 50#.

When I was working for the conservation district I did some work with chicken farm that had 990,000 laying hens. They had huge chicken houses. The employees who worked in one house didn't even have lunch with the employees from another house. They had their own rail road siding that came into their feed mill. There was 6-8 rail road cars parked there at a time. Buying feed in 50 pound bags for anything is a loosing proposition.

 

[50/50Farms]

I used to truck around 125,000 chickens a day.

 

[Ky hills]

When I was working for the conservation district I did some work with chicken farm that had 990,000 laying hens. They had huge chicken houses. The employees who worked in one house didn't even have lunch with the employees from another house. They had their own rail road siding that came into their feed mill. There was 6-8 rail road cars parked there at a time. Buying feed in 50 pound bags for anything is a loosing proposition.

Yes I agree, but we are not in a commercial chicken area and bulk rations are not available.
We lose a lot of money in layer feed and dog food by the 50 lb bags,
We do get bulk cattle feed delivered. I have at times tried to feed the chickens some of that, but it's not the right ration for them and doesn't work well for that.

 

[Dave]

Yes I agree, but we are not in a commercial chicken area and bulk rations are not available.
We lose a lot of money in layer feed and dog food by the 50 lb bags,
We do get bulk cattle feed delivered. I have at times tried to feed the chickens some of that, but it's not the right ration for them and doesn't work well for that.

That area wasn't so much a chicken area. Some California company had came up there years ago and built that farm. They also have another big farm somewhere south of Portland in the Willamette Valley.

 

[farmerjan]

@Ky hills ... just a question... how many chickens do you have ? I have had 125 down to 5 at different times... I have a smallish bulk bin (1 ton or so) that I put up and get a bulk delivery of poultry feed when they bring the cattle feed. I have had it in the bin for a year now as I am way down in chicken numbers. Someone said that the feed could get moths or worms in it and I said so what... chickens like worms/larvae.... it may not be perfect but it sure beat the extreme cost of bagged feed. AND it keeps the rodents out of it....Since you get bulk feed delivery of cattle feed, you might want to check into it....
I usually get it filled in the fall so it goes 4-6 months of cold when there isn't the problems with meal worms or anything like that to start with. As long as it doesn't have any leaks and gets moldy, they do pretty good. My birds do get out loose for some free ranging when I am around due to hawks...

 

[Ky hills]

@Ky hills ... just a question... how many chickens do you have ? I have had 125 down to 5 at different times... I have a smallish bulk bin (1 ton or so) that I put up and get a bulk delivery of poultry feed when they bring the cattle feed. I have had it in the bin for a year now as I am way down in chicken numbers. Someone said that the feed could get moths or worms in it and I said so what... chickens like worms/larvae.... it may not be perfect but it sure beat the extreme cost of bagged feed. AND is keep the rodents out of it....Since you get bulk feed delivery of cattle feed, you might want to check into it....
I usually get it filled in the fall so it goes 4-6 months of cold when there isn't the problems with meal worms or anything like that to start with. As long as it doesn't have any leaks and gets moldy, they do pretty good. My birds do get out loose for some free ranging when I am around due to hawks...

Thanks for the response, I'll ask and see if the feed store can mix a bulk ration. I use gravity wagons to keep feed in.
I don't think it would matter about bugs and worms the chickens eat anything that moves or looks different to them. They'll even eat mice, frogs, small snakes. I'd like to free range them sone but too many varmints around. Most times we just keep around 25 hens and a rooster or two, right now have 35 but getting ready to cull out some older ones.

 

[mwj]

Most bagged poultry feed is priced for the back yard owners. Like buying dog food they never check the price. Do you feed any scratch feed like oats, wheat or cracked corn?

 

[MurraysMutts]

Neighbors chooks are all the time buggin' in the pasture. They really REALLY like picking thru the cattle manure. Wonder if it makes the eggs taste sheety?

 

[50/50Farms]

Neighbors chooks are all the time buggin' in the pasture. They really REALLY like picking thru the cattle manure. Wonder if it makes the eggs taste sheety?

Until the coyote problem got out of hand, we never had any that didn't get out and pick. I personally think the eggs were better before they all had to be cooped up 24/7.

 

[Ky hills]

Most bagged poultry feed is priced for the back yard owners. Like buying dog food they never check the price. Do you feed any scratch feed like oats, wheat or cracked corn?

I feed some corn at times,