HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1992-09-23, Page 14Page 14 Times -Advocate September 23, 1992
partners have a lot invested in business
By Fred (:roves
T -A staff
MT. CARMF t - Firmin in Canaria is a gamble. no
doubt about that
Por same it mans, risking everything and tlttpen-
mentehg. That's what Matt and Sue Mullcrhavedone.
Mau started with growing -turnips, found the competi-
tion was too much to keep up so he began raising pigs
of which he still has a few of, and then it was cattle.
But now, he and his wite are in the business of raising chickens. Not the
kind you see running around the farm for family use. hut rather, they have
a targe two-level barn which at one time can have as many as 14030
chickens which will weigh a maximum of 2.1 kilograms when they are
shipped off to the processor.
"Dad -and 1-totrn-aabout600-acres--and we -had 200 head of .cattle. In the
winter of 91' we didn't take -any money and 1 said, 'we can't keep going
like this," said Matt Muller.
'The .quotas cost more than
the barn did."
He had his first crop of chickens ready for the processing plant in June
of 1991. But getting started took a lot of money.
Muller explained that there is a quota on the number of chickens each
farmer can have. One quota is equivalent to 1.65 kilograms of chicken.
Which means if he decides one particular crop will be of bigger chickens,
he can't grow as many because of the quota.
Currently he has 10.000 quotas but when he first started last year, he had
5,000 which was the minimum he could purchase from the Ontario Chick-
en Marketing Board.
"They chewed 'that to 10,1100 since we staged because ties many peoplr
were getting into the business.'
With his investment, Muller said this will not just be an experiment
"i think we've sank too much into this. The quotas cost more than the
bunslid "
Heesid each of the initial 5,(10(1 quotas cost him S18 which means star
up cost was *90,000 phis the barn and everything that goes with it like hy-
dro, feed, -labour, etc.
The Muller's bought their additional 5,000 quotas mostly when the
GATT talks were going on and a lot of farmers were selling their quota
off at prices around 514 per quota.
But there are advantages of going into the chicken business as explained
by Muller.
"In the chicken business. the price i+ already set and you know hos.
much you're going to get because there is a quota.'
That is so different from the cattle business where farmers have to keep
their hams full until the price is right and a lot of times that never has
pens.
The chicken hastiness becomes a routine which has a nine week cycle on
the Muller farm. New chicks. costing 50 cents each (add that to the start
up cost ac wells amve and huddle together under the lights for the firs:
couple of days.
After between 42 and 4? days, depending on the si7.c, a van full of
catchers comes to the farm and within a few hours, have the chickens or
thevuck and on their way to the processing plant.
A lot of times, it is the plant which suggests how big to grow the chick-
ens.
"It's commtmication between the processor and the tanner of what the
am/illy want at the -processing plant," said Muller.
Sometimes that communication breaks down however. like when the
processor asked the Muller's to keep their chickens tor an additional day
andshey lost nearly 500 of them due to the hot weather.
Field crop competition
The 1992 Field Chop Compe-
tition has completed another
segment this year -with the judg-
ing of the white beans end soy-
beans The judge for these two
crops was Ter-
ry Baker frnni
Bluewater
Criop Care
Consulting
There were 11
white bean
and 14 soy-
bean entries. The field sores
are as follows: In white beans
Rob -Down 95, Pete Tuckey 95,
Passmore Farms 90, Ewart era -
go 89. Cliff Hicks 89, Gerald
Johns 89• Alan Powe 89, John
Thomson Rli, Gerakf Dearing
kiss 'Toni Triehner 83, Allan
Rundle K. Bruce Shapton R1,
and Ray Cann 77.
In soybeans: Alan Hcrn 94,
Passmore Farms 93, Tom Trieb-
ner 93. Bob Down 92, Larry.
Lynn 92, Pew Tuckey 92, Ray
Cann 90, Earl French 90, Don
Glavin 88, Allan Rundle 88, Cie
raid Johns '87, John Thomson
87, Gerald Dearing W and '
Bruce ShaptenRW
The ensilage corn and grain
coni will N
judged this
week
i would like to
remind all exhib-
itors in the Field
Crop Comped
tion that your en-
try at the fair will account for 11
3 of your final score, therefore it
is important to get those entries
into the fair. The samples re-
quired arc as follows has (first
cut) either one hale or chopped
bushel, winter wheat - 1/4 bush
el, barley - 1/4 bushel, white
beans - 1/4 bushel. soybean - six
plants, ensilage corn - six stalks
and grain corn - ten ears. These
entries may he made before
noon on Friday , September 25.
Thank you for your participation
this year and sec you at the fair. •
,11111(
�I
Matt Muller with one of his chicks
Survey on services
TORONTO - The Onano Min
istry of Agriculture and Food i'.
launching a province -wide survey
this fall to ensure its services meet
today's farmers need.~.
"The results of the survey will be
used w find out whether adjust-
ments should be made to the ser
vices OMAI- provides either
across the province or locally, to
make sure farmers' needs are ad-
dressed." Ontario Monitor of Agri-
culture and Food Elmer Buchanan
said. "We also want to determine
how the efficiency of program de-
livery can be improved."
Approximately 1,000 Ontario
producers will be contacted by tel-
ephone during the evening around
raid September to -obtain their
opuuon on OMAFs services.
"I'm sure that fanners who are
contacted during the survey will
want to provide their input to this
unpcusatrt -effort _to .improve our
services," Buchanan said
SUPPORT THE ONLY FARMER -
OWNED COMPREHENSIVE WHITE
BEAN DEALER IN THE INDUSTRY
-* .Locally owned by farmers
* Friendly Fast £ffi�ient Service
* Now Total Rel)eivirg Capacity of 25,000
$uShels per hour
* Fair Grades
* Honest Weights
The New John Deere 6000, and 7000 series
tractors have arrived at Huron Tractor.
We will have there 65-145 HP tractors ready for
you to drive. Please call Linda at 2351115
for details.
Hensafl
262-3002
1-800265-5180
Seaforth
Office 527-0770
Elevator 522-1000