Calculate the Cost of Starting a Dairy Farm

Dairy farming can be a lucrative and rewarding business, but determining the amount of capital required to start a dairy farm can be a daunting task. To calculate the cost of starting a dairy farm, document some basic information on a spreadsheet. Start by following some common steps.

Steps

  1. Establish the total area of your dairy farm. Total area includes pasture land or grazing area, fields for growing crops, corrals for holding cattle in the winter seasons, buildings including barns, sheds and housing, and areas for storing feed and manure. This can be the most important step when you calculate the cost of starting a dairy farm because of how it affects your other costs. Virtually all of your other costs from machinery and capital to feed and veterinary care will be based off of the number of animals that you can house on the property.
    • You will need to know your fixed, variable, operating, and depreciation costs. Fixed costs include rent; variable costs include fuel, feed, fertilizer, cattle prices for selling culls and bull calves, maintenance for machinery, etc.; operating costs include costs of feeding cows, milk production, veterinary bills, feed bills, etc.; depreciation costs include machinery, building, livestock, and equipment.
  2. Determine the number of dairy cattle that the grazing area can legally support. Many areas have local governmental guidelines that mandate the maximum number of hoofed animals that are allowed per acre of grazing land. Some countries like Canada also require a quota to be purchased before or during the start-up process.
    • The cost per head (or per animal) will vary slightly (usually less than 10 percent) depending on the "line" or family history of the animals that you are considering purchasing. You can get a baseline value of dairy cattle in your areas by visiting the local livestock auction.
    • Multiply the number of animals that you can house by the median sale price to arrive at the estimated cost of purchasing your dairy herd.
    • Feed is one cost to consider. The amount of feed each animal will require is dependent on the climate and whether you are feeding straight grain, sweet feed, or a combination of grain and grass or hay. Your local feed supplier will be able to help you prepare a diet specific to your region and give you an estimated monthly price per head.
  3. Multiply the number of cattle that you can house by the basic individual monthly animal maintenance costs.
  4. Itemize the equipment that you will need to lease or purchase. Remember to include milking machines, sterilizing machines and milk storage tanks as well as computers and other office equipment.
    • Veterinary care is another cost to consider. Most dairy farms utilize a combination of inoculations or vaccinations, hormone injections and supplements to maximize the milk production. You should also anticipate injuries and illness. Your local veterinarian will be able to supply you with the specific items required for your region and the cost per head of each item as well as a rough estimate of emergency care costs.
    • If you live in a country where injecting hormones into dairy cows to increase production is outlawed (such as in Canada and the United Kingdom), this is one less thing to consider as far as veterinary care is concerned.
  5. Estimate your non-livestock monthly operating costs. Include your mortgage, utility bills, payroll, farm vehicles, etc.
  6. Check with your local government to find out if it has any licensing fees related to starting a dairy farm. You will need to buy a quota from the federal government if you are starting a dairy farm in Canada.
  7. Request insurance quotes. You will need to cover your property (actual real estate), your animals, your equipment and your future profit or unexpected loss of income.

Tips

  • Consider costs for hired labour on your farm. Often dairy farms are large enough to require at least one hired hand to help with operations, as it may be too much for you to run a dairy farm all by yourself.
  • Before you begin to calculate the cost of starting a dairy farm, you need to decide whether or not you will house a bull on site. Bulls are known to be aggressive and, in some cases, dangerous. But the cows will have to be bred regularly to continue providing milk. If you are going to house a bull on site, check with your insurance company to determine if you need an additional insurance policy. If you are not going to house a bull on site, remember to factor in the cost of inseminating the cows.
    • If you don't wish to keep a bull, consider using Artificial Insemination (AI) to keep your cows bred regularly. It takes no feed, no extra corrals, and much less risk of life to AI cows, and all is needed is to hire an AI technician to breed your cows for you. You will have to have your hired hands to do heat detection for you in order to time when your cows get bred, though.

Warnings

  • You may get errors in your calculations as you go along with your plan, so make sure you run-by the calculations again and again to see where you are going wrong and what you may be missing.

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