Which is more profitable? Beef or dairy?

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Alot more start up cost with dairy. The cash flow is there monthly vs the beef were there isn't. Dairy your stuck to what the milk plant/ co-op pays you. Beef you have options far as marketing your own beef sending to different auction barns etc. To each is own I suppose. There both buissnesses and can either be profitable or a loss depending how it's managed.
 
Dairy is not going to make you any money in the u.s. and you have way more inputs less sale options for products. Takes up way more of your time .
 
Dairy is not going to make you any money in the u.s. and you have way more inputs less sale options for products. Takes up way more of your time .
I know lots of people who make money in dairy, but not everyone can do it.
 
I know lots of people who make money in dairy, but not everyone can do it.
It might be that factory farming has the dairy market cornered these days. Have milk cows have been "Walmartized"? Is milk chiefly a corporate big-box operation? The up-and-coming mom-and-pop may have a better chance to make a decent profit in beef. Specialty dairy and beef operations like Certified Organic seem to be the way to go for some small-scale farms these days. Shopping in supermarkets and seeing "Organic" on food labels really puts bigger numbers on the price tags. Speaking of Walmart, I see a lot of imported from Mexico/Brazil/Australia/New Zealand on ground beef labels there. Premium beef in high-priced meat markets might still be largely American grown. Is beef really grown cheaper on foreign soil? Dairy goats seem to be a thing of mom-and-pops too. $4 to $5 a quart for Meyenberg goat milk in Walmarts. If I were rich, but I'm not, I'd probably buy organic foods only. Chemicals put into my body gross me out.
 
It might be that factory farming has the dairy market cornered these days. Have milk cows have been "Walmartized"? Is milk chiefly a corporate big-box operation. The mom-and-pop may have a better chance to make a decent profit in beef. Specialty dairy and beef operations like Certified Organic seem to be the way to go for some small-scale farms these days. Shopping in supermarkets and seeing "Organic" on food labels really puts bigger numbers on the price tags. Speaking of Walmart, I see a lot of imported from Mexico/Brazil/Australia/New Zealand on ground beef labels there. Premium beef in high-priced meat markets might still be largely American grown. Is beef really grown cheaper on foreign soil? Dairy goats seem to be a thing of mom-and-pops too. $4 to $5 a quart for Meyenberg goat milk in Walmarts. If I were rich, but I'm not, I'd probably buy organic foods only.
I suppose it depends what you call factory farming. The farms are getting larger, but they're still mostly family operations. Pastured Holstein cows are almost extinct outside of organic production. Organic isn't as great of a deal for farmers as it seems. Yes, you get a premium, but production is lower and feed costs higher.
 
It might be that factory farming has the dairy market cornered these days. Have milk cows have been "Walmartized"? Is milk chiefly a corporate big-box operation? The up-and-coming mom-and-pop may have a better chance to make a decent profit in beef. Specialty dairy and beef operations like Certified Organic seem to be the way to go for some small-scale farms these days. Shopping in supermarkets and seeing "Organic" on food labels really puts bigger numbers on the price tags. Speaking of Walmart, I see a lot of imported from Mexico/Brazil/Australia/New Zealand on ground beef labels there. Premium beef in high-priced meat markets might still be largely American grown. Is beef really grown cheaper on foreign soil? Dairy goats seem to be a thing of mom-and-pops too. $4 to $5 a quart for Meyenberg goat milk in Walmarts. If I were rich, but I'm not, I'd probably buy organic foods only. Chemicals put into my body gross me out.
What chemicals do you think you are ingesting with food not labeled "organic"?
 
What chemicals do you think you are ingesting with food not labeled "organic"?
chemical fertilizers, pesticides and also growth hormones and genetic modification

the organic camp says organic foods are better for human health overall: crops are fertilized with manure, not chemicals
 
I suppose it depends what you call factory farming. The farms are getting larger, but they're still mostly family operations. Pastured Holstein cows are almost extinct outside of organic production. Organic isn't as great of a deal for farmers as it seems. Yes, you get a premium, but production is lower and feed costs higher.
Corporate operations as in Tyson.
 
How much is raw milk going for where you are? Do you want a commercial dairy or beef operation or do you want to do farmers market/sell to locals stuff?
Raw milk? I don't know. A gallon of generic at my local SW Oklahoma Walmart is about $2.45 for skim milk and about $4.94/gal. for a "name brand" like Hiland in Oklahoma. Horizon Organic is a whopping $5.47 for a measly half gallon. I don't think farmers are getting rich off these fancy-label milks, some middleman must be skimming the cream off the deal somewhere. I don't see how humble Oklahomans can afford $5.00 on up for even a gallon-size thing of milk. I get the cheap generic stuff in the big gallon size. Breakfast cereal prices is also a rip-off too: generics vs name brands for a box full grain, cereal grasses, cattle food. Meyenberg goat milk is $4.54 for a measly quart.
 
Organic justifies the cost from the increased red tape, regulations and potential loss due to adherence to the qualifications. We buy organic half gallons of milk, primarily due tot he longer shelf life (4-5 weeks vs 1 week if unopened). I still prefer local to organic.
 
The better question is who profits from beef.

Fed beef processors at times saw profit margins exceed $900 per head, while cow processors saw margins of $400 per head. Fed beef processors in 2021 made a profit of $562 per head through the first nine months of the year, according to HedgersEdge.com. The first quarter saw margins average $301.38 per head, the second quarter $698 per head and the third quarter $688 per head. October saw profits of $580 per head and November saw profits of $452 per head.​
As if these profits weren't large enough, the amount of money that Tyson Foods Inc.'s Beef business unit made was stunning. Tyson is one of the world's largest producers of high-quality, grain-fed beef, so it was in an excellent position to take advantage of the growing global demand for that kind of beef. Its results reflected this. The segment in Tyson's fiscal 2021 fourth quarter ended Oct. 2 had operating income of $1.15 billion, beating its previous quarterly record of $1.12 billion set in the prior quarter. Operating income for the year was a record $3.24 billion, twice the previous record of $1.58 billion set in fiscal 2020.​
 
I suppose it depends what you call factory farming. The farms are getting larger, but they're still mostly family operations.
Each one of the 1,000s of chicken farms here are family owned. They have one customer, Peco. Peco is family owned too, for three generations.
 
Most organic dairy's I've seen around usually are the biggest slim balls around. Just cause it's labeled organic doesn't mean they don't pull there strings cheat the system. I'm sure there's guys out there that are legit and do it by the book but as randall said lower production and higher cost, I'll also throw more on to that alot unhealthier of animals. Up here we call organic dairy's last chance farming cause it's always the guys that have let there land barn and cattle go down hill and try cashing in on that premium for one last chance. Have you ever seen a truly organic dairy cow? Look frail nasty unhealthy. Let alone organic corn? Short full of weeds and grass no cob.... I'm sorry I'm pro conventional farming. It hasn't been a issue for how many years why change it.
 

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