The Rural Voice, 1985-11, Page 18SHIFTING GEARS
Staying on the
farm — with a
new focus
Steve Hodges wants to stay in farm-
ing. In an attempt to streamline his
operation, he is shifting from a con-
ventional operation to a more inten-
sified farm management program with
the help of an off -farm job.
by M.L. Weiser -Hamilton
16 THE RUP \L MCE
T
Steve Hodges is a farmer with a
simple, basic objective. He
wants to make a living off his
100 -acre Egremont Township farm.
Unfortunately, the economics of
farming today are preventing him
from doing that, and in an attempt to
streamline his operation he is shifting
his primary focus away from conven-
tional farming methods to a more in-
tensified farm management program.
Hodges purchased his farm in 1983
and hoped to use the profits to build
up his flock of sheep gradually. It
hasn't worked that way, and despite
cash cropping his totally workable
farm and managing his 60 ewes, he
has had to take an off -farm job as a
self-employed masoner and plasterer
to help pay his mortgage and bills.
"From what I've got off the farm just
since 1983, I don't see how some peo-
ple can survive."
People still give Hodges strange
looks when he tells them that he raises
sheep for a living. It's not the conven-
tional beef or pig option that most
farmers choose, but it is part of
Hodges' plan to make his farm as
viable an operation as possible. He
believes that farmers should supply
the demand for agricultural products,
producing where there is a need and
not glutting the market with already
over -abundant produce. Not only did
he realize that all but 30 per cent of
Iamb is imported to Ontario, but he
also saw that he could get established
in the sheep business with a minimum
of overhead.
Hodges had also spent several years
in the United Kingdom where the
sheep population far outnumbers the
human population. "I got to know
the sheep business when I was in
Wales. There's very little invested in
them and you can carry ewes over the
winter for very little. The lambs can
be fattened very readily for the Easter
market." Hodges' long-term goal is
to build his flock to 350 ewes and
maintain them on his 100 acres.
He currently crops 40 acres in
barley and on the remaining 60 acres
bales hay and grazes his sheep. His
grazing fields are split into two -acre
lots to ensure maximum feeding from
his land base and to minimize pasture
waste. Each lot of land supports the
60 ewes and 35 lambs for about a
week. "I took them to the middle of
August on four acres. That's about
eight weeks of pasturing," he says.
The six years that Hodges spent in
the United Kingdom gave him a new
perspective on farming techniques.