The Lucknow Sentinel, 1982-04-07, Page 38no Farm Edition, Week of April 7, 1982 - 19
Keya to success in the barnyard; improve efficiency
For many years, the virtu-
ally surefire way to make
more money on the farm was
to expand.
But farm management ex-
perts agree now the key to
success in the barn yard is to
improve the operation's ef-
ficiency, regardless of size.
Bert Moggach, a provin-
cial agricultural ° engineer
'working in Victoria County,
has been mulling over the
important of efficiency com-
` pared with expanding.
"You should ' get better
before you get bigger," he
recommends.
A farmer who' uses a
"moderate approach" now
has "more chance of success
and of getting more fun out
of life than • than the large
operator withthe superdup-
per push-button outfit.:"
A sample • of Moggach's
rough guidelines, subject to
the vagaries ofindividual
setups, for a moderate opera:
tion includes 30 cows for a
dairy operation, 100 sows for
a farrow -only setup and 50
sows for a farrow -to -finish
farm.
"You can, expand to the
limit of your management
ability," says Moggach. "If
you try to grow too fast you
find you have too much " to
learn' in too short a..time. If
you, get too many irons in the
fire it simply get beyond.
you."
'• He said nine of the 10
farmers who are in serious
financial trouble now are ex-
amples of operations that
could use improved manage-
ment to create more efficient
systems. 'Good manage-
ment is paying attention to a.
lot of seemingly uniniportant
details, '•'
Bill Allen, head of farm
management programs at
Ridgetown College of Agri-
cultural Technology,' agreed
'"the scene is changing. It
used to be that bigger is
better, but that's the not
guideline to use any more."
Allen said the college now
instructs- farmers to "make
efficient use of capital" and
consider increasing "the lab-
our input" as keys to making
money.
"we're suggesting that
farmers try to make as effic-
ient use as possible of what
they have already."
He noted' that the trend
historically has been toward
expanding into higher acre-
ages and higher technology
so that overhead costs were
• spread over a larger land and
building base.
But the unanticipated soar-
. \ ing 'of interest rates has hit
big operators especially hard
and made them "very sus-
ceptible to fluctuations" in
financing costs because the
effect of high rates on over -
lead .in' a heavily financed
operation is "magnified" by
the size of the farm: ,
"1 don't think farms are
getting bigger any more,"
said Allen.
He recommends that farm-
ers who want to. increase
their profit consider "a con-
solidation process and make
the most effective and prod -
wive use" of their existing
land and equipment. "More
labour should be used before
more capital,"
The old rule of thumb for a
farm large enought to sup-
port a family was 100 acres.
But Allen,said these days 100
acres would be sufficient
only if "most of the income is
coming out a barn."
He. said it would be "too
tough to make a go of it on
100 acres of crops" with the
current price situation. He
noted prices are low for beef
and pork, and • corn and
soybean markets are "de-
pressed."
"If a farmer asked me
what he should grow to make
more money today. I would
find it difficult to say the way
prices are going."
He said he would recom-
mend sizes of about 200
acres for a successful live-
stock operation and 300-500
acres for cash crops:
Barry. Fraser, provincial
agriculture representative in
Kent County, said "the most
significant input cost on the
carm'now is' the high interest
costs."
He recommends that farm-
ers diversify _their operation
and consider inclusion of
some specialized crops such
as popcorn, seed crops and
waxy maize corn.
He said he is not aware of
any expanding farms.
"There ' really . is' no land
changing hands at present.
Increasing size at this time
for a highly financed farmer
is just adding more. risk. And
the farmer these days needs
to minimize risk.
Fraser recommends a com-
bintation of increased effic-
iency and consolidation for
hard-pressed • farmers. One
way to reduce overhead
would be by"liquidating
your equipment and hiring it
inwhen needed or using
custom operators."
But before selling the.
family combine, farmers
should "weigh the timeli-
ness" of their needs when it
comes t� planting. and harv-
esting when ' rented . equip-
ment is in high demand
compared "against the risk
of owning the equipment.
"The problem of not own-
ing it is not being able to get
the equipment when _ you
need it."
Fraser said farmers also
should consider pooling
equipment and sharing the
overhead that way.
"The fastest and easiest.
dollars are made by keen tax
management," he said.
"Once you've got your dol-
lars, hang onto them. Good
tax . tense is a strong pre•
requisite. to good, farm mane
agement."
Sandy. Forsyth, Middlesex
County agriculture repres-
entative. recommends that
farmers produce as much of
their own supplies as feas-
ible, especially in feed for
livestock. .
"In most farm enterprises,
if you do any kind of job at
all, you can do it cheaper
yourself than by buying
everything. '
As an example of how
farms have expanded over
the years until recent events
forced the trend's demise,
Forsyth points out the
number of registered milk
producers in Middlesex has
decreased to 400 from 1,100
in the last 15 years,"but the
milk production is the same.
The herds are just bigger and
the production per cow has
gone up."
Computer programs for farmers unavailable
Computers have not arriv-
ed on the farm in a big way
yet.
That conclusion was drawn
by University of Guelph's
continuing edµcation director
Mark Waldron. A mini -sur-
vey he conducted and pres-
ented to the Ontario Institute
of agrologists recently indi-
cates farmers still get infor-
mation ` "in a surprisingly'
conservative and traditional"
manner.
The farmers, all university
graduates, still get market
information from radio, be-
come aware of new farm
technology through farm per-
iodicals, and go to Ontario
agriculture ministry agreps
and extension staff for more
technical information.
Apparently the 37 -year-old
theory;. •of farm innovators
trying new techniques,and
being. copied by neighours
still holds true,. Waldron
said.
Waldron said farmers are
unlikely to leap onto the
computer bandwagon until
hardware, the actual comput-
er, is made more dependable
and softwsie, the computer
programs, is made applic-
able to farmers.
There's little software av-
ailableto farmers, Waldron
said. "It might be a good
business to set up, he
mused.
Dan Rose, a farm manage-
ment specialist for the Ont-
ario agriculture ministry bas-
ed in Markdale, said. a large
feedlot operator in his area
used an Apple 2 computer.
The main constraint in using
a computer is time, he said.'
Informationgoing into the
computer has to be from your
farm and it has to be good
information;" he stressed.
Waldron warned that com
Turn to page 21*
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