The Rural Voice, 1990-12, Page 541 '1
V
LUCKNOW EQUIPMENT
Built to Last!
SNOWBLOWERS
FEED MIXER WAGONS
FEED MIXERS
GRAIN BUGGIES
GRAIN CARTS
FEED TANKS
ROTARY CUTTERS
Season's
Best Wishes
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HELM WELDING LIMITED
LUCKNOW, ONTARIO, CANADA PHONE 519-529-7627
FARM SAFEIY
Give the
gift that counts
to your family...
YOU.
Think Safety.
WEST
WAWANOSH
MUTUAL
INSURANCE
COMPANY
Merry Christmas
All of us associated with
West Wawanosh Mutual
share with you the joy of
Christmas and extend our
wishes for a safe, successful
and happy New Year.
N. Peever
Manager
When you need insurance call:
Frank Foran, R.R. 2, Lucknow 528-3824
Lyons & Mulhern, 46 West St.,
Goderich 524-2664
Kenneth B. MacLean, R.R. 2, Paisley 368-7537
John Nixon, R.R. 5, Brussels 887-9417
Donald R. Simpson, R.R. 3, Ripley 395-5362
Delmar Sproul, R.R. 3, Auburn 529-7273
Laurie Campbell, Brussels 887-9051
Slade Insurance Brokers Inc.
Kincardine 396-9513
Port Elgin 389-4341
Owen Sound 376-1774
Dungannon, Ont. NOM 1R0 (519) 529-7922 2
50 THE RURAL VOICE
ADVICE
MAKING PROFIT
IN DIFFICULT TIMES
Several producers have indicated to
me that making a profit from farming is
becoming more difficult all the time.
Looking at the problem closely, we
could summarize by saying that ex-
penses are increasing much faster than
revenues.
Why are expenses rising? Is it be-
cause of inflation or other reasons be-
yond our control; such as the increase in
fuel prices due to the crisis in the Gulf, or
high interest rates? We have very little,
and in most cases, no control over exter-
nal forces. However, we have 100 per
cent control of the internal forces that
affect our farming business.
The bottom line for farmers search-
ing for a profit in 1990 seems to be
reducing expenses while increasing, or
at least maintaining revenues. No doubt
you are wondering how this can be ac-
complished. Let's consider some op-
tions.
Somehow farmers must learn to use
inputs more efficiently. Many farmers
have been doing this for years, but eve-
ryone will have to do it better in the
future. There are two ways of looking at
this issue: keep output constant while
reducing inputs, or increase output
while keeping inputs constant. Remem-
ber that profit is equal to the difference
between revenue and expenses.
Wise use of inputs may mean doing
things a little differently than your
neighbour. This is a challenging con-
cept to grasp for many producers. Each
farm has a different mix of resources
available on which to operate. There-
fore, when trying to maximize profit,
each operation must make decisions
which will have the greatest impact on
itself. Very few Ontario farms have
exactly the same resource mix. Simply
looking across the road and following
your neighbour's lead may not be maxi-
mizing the profit potential on your
farms.
To increase the profit potential of
your farm for the nineties, all areas of the
operation will have to pull their own
weight. No longer will it be acceptable
to lose money on one enterprise in order
to supply another enterprise which is
profitable. An example of this may be