Starting a dairy?

[babsbag]

Marketing is a big part of the equation but luckily for me my DH is willing to do alot of that for me and he really likes it. He is much better at it than I am. I haven't gotten into the actual start up costs yet, but I know it won't be cheap. I will be submitting plans in a few weeks I hope and so far the inspectiors have been very helpful and friendly.

I have been told that since I don't have cows I don't have to worry about waste management of manure and I don't have to have gutters in the milking parlor. We will most likely store the grey water and then use it for pasture irrigation. It is so dry here in the summer that some extra water will be very useful.

I appreciate the offer of help if I run into any hurdles in that dept. I didn't know there was a dairy in Willows. I know there is one in Cottonwood but the owner doesn't allow anyone to tour her facility. :/

On my plate right now is trying to decide on wall coating that is easy to apply and waterproof. I was looking at epoxy paint but it is quite expensive. I don't care for the fiberglass reinforced plastic panels because of the seams. I am thinking cement block in the milk parlour but would like to use something else in the production part of the facility. I would like to tile it but very costly so still pondering this. If anybody has ideas I would sure like to hear them.

 

[kstaven]

Urethane.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

I would recommend talking to people who are doing what you want to do. Go visit their farms, talk to them about what is involved, see their daily routine, talk about inspections, etc.

 

[babsbag]

Urethane.

Applied over what? Plywood or concrete or something else?

 

[kstaven]

Aquaboard.

 

[OneFineAcre]

I am going to use Alpines and LaManchas, that is what I have now. I also have a Togg and not really fond of her milk but it might add some interest to aged cheeses when I get to that point. I have friends that own Nubians and Saanens so if I decide I want to add another breed or add a particular quality to my milk it won't be hard to do.

Thank you for the dairy names, I will check them out. I am only going to have one chance to get this floorplan right so I am looking for any and all plans and input on that. I am planning on milking not more than 15 does and trying to keep this a one person operation for now. I do have friends that will help and fill in when I need it.

Personally, I don't think this would be financially feasible to have a dairy with only 15 goats.

Even if you can do all of the construction yourself.

Besides, you could milk more than 15 even if a one person operation.

 

[sprocket]

I am going to use Alpines and LaManchas, that is what I have now. I also have a Togg and not really fond of her milk but it might add some interest to aged cheeses when I get to that point. I have friends that own Nubians and Saanens so if I decide I want to add another breed or add a particular quality to my milk it won't be hard to do.

Thank you for the dairy names, I will check them out. I am only going to have one chance to get this floorplan right so I am looking for any and all plans and input on that. I am planning on milking not more than 15 does and trying to keep this a one person operation for now. I do have friends that will help and fill in when I need it.

Personally, I don't think this would be financially feasible to have a dairy with only 15 goats.

Even if you can do all of the construction yourself.

Besides, you could milk more than 15 even if a one person operation.

When I started milking at our dairy, it was with 32 milkers. I was doing five at a time and milking took about and hour or so, with 30 minutes afterwards for clean-up. I was using home made milking stanchions sourced from materials from the junk yard. Next year, we're looking to be milking about 60-70 girls. I've just upgraded the parlour to a new set of headgates from Colburn which allows me to milk 12 at a time:

http://www.farmandranchdepot.com/farm-equipment/Sheep-Goat_Basic_Stall_w-Gates_1x12.html

I could probably comfortably milk over 100 animals by myself using this system - I'd encourage you to think about doing more. It's not that much more work to feed and milk another 15 or 20 goats, but the financial returns will be significantly more.

We're currently going through the process to become a licensed dairy processing plant ourselves and I've just put together some basic floor plans. If you'd like a copy, I'd gladly send you what we're going with - perhaps send me a private message with your email?

Out of curiosity, what is the going rate for selling a gallon of goat's milk in your area? What is the price per pound for the cheeses you plan on making? I have some spreadsheets I can also send you that helped us to forecast our sales, based on the number of goats we'd be milking.

Best of luck in this endeavour - and go for it! I'm so glad we did, though sometimes it seems like our crazy dream verges on becoming our worst nightmare.

 

[babsbag]

The reason I decided on 15 is that I am feeding that many right now so I know I can afford it; we have no access to good pasture so they are on dry lot. I am also going to try and work part time for the first year just so I don't stress the income too much. I just paid off a fairly big loan so I have some cushion in my budget right now, but I want to use that to build the facility and try not to borrow much. If I can keep the start up cost down then my only added expense is increase in power cost and insurance and inspection fees. The other costs should be directly related to the amount of product I produce. Right now I would just like the goats to earn their own way. I am not looking to live on the income from the dairy.

I am allowed 30 goats on my land, but I am hoping that the land next to me will come up for sale soon and would like to try and buy it. There are really 2 parcels that might be available, one is 8 acres and one is 16, but for now I have to stick with my 5 acres.

I am building the milking parlor big enough for expansion and still debating on equipment size. I would rather start small and build up than start big and fail miserably.

In California there is a pretty big difference in getting licensed for a Grade A dairy and a Grade B. The Grade B is manufacturing milk and can only be used for cheese or yogurt. That is my goal for right now. In order to sell "market milk" I have to put in some paved lanes for the goats between the housing and the milk parlor and that will be pricey so it is future project. As it is I am moving my goat barn so it is 100' from the milk parlor, another requirement for Grade A. We can sell raw milk in CA, but there are a bunch other requirements for that as well so I don't know if I will ever go there. Insurance for that is $$$$. I may never go Grade A as I don't know how much demand there would be for pastuerized goats milk, which is what I would have. I am going to stick to cheese for now. I am not sure what a gallon of goat milk is going for as I don't know anyone that sells it.

Fresh Chevre sells for about $20 a pound if you have a reputation but I am planning on $10-12 to start.

I have dreams of moving all of this onto some pretty irrigated land with a view of our gorgeous mountains and offer cheese tasting and picnic grounds along with an agricultural education center and gardens and orchards. But I am 55 years old so lets be realistic and start with a small dairy and see if I have the financial means to do the rest. Dreams are what keep me going day by day.

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

The reason I decided on 15 is that I am feeding that many right now so I know I can afford it; we have no access to good pasture so they are on dry lot. I am also going to try and work part time for the first year just so I don't stress the income too much. I just paid off a fairly big loan so I have some cushion in my budget right now, but I want to use that to build the facility and try not to borrow much. If I can keep the start up cost down then my only added expense is increase in power cost and insurance and inspection fees. The other costs should be directly related to the amount of product I produce. Right now I would just like the goats to earn their own way. I am not looking to live on the income from the dairy.

I am allowed 30 goats on my land, but I am hoping that the land next to me will come up for sale soon and would like to try and buy it. There are really 2 parcels that might be available, one is 8 acres and one is 16, but for now I have to stick with my 5 acres.

I am building the milking parlor big enough for expansion and still debating on equipment size. I would rather start small and build up than start big and fail miserably.

In California there is a pretty big difference in getting licensed for a Grade A dairy and a Grade B. The Grade B is manufacturing milk and can only be used for cheese or yogurt. That is my goal for right now. In order to sell "market milk" I have to put in some paved lanes for the goats between the housing and the milk parlor and that will be pricey so it is future project. As it is I am moving my goat barn so it is 100' from the milk parlor, another requirement for Grade A. We can sell raw milk in CA, but there are a bunch other requirements for that as well so I don't know if I will ever go there. Insurance for that is $$$$. I may never go Grade A as I don't know how much demand there would be for pastuerized goats milk, which is what I would have. I am going to stick to cheese for now. I am not sure what a gallon of goat milk is going for as I don't know anyone that sells it.

Fresh Chevre sells for about $20 a pound if you have a reputation but I am planning on $10-12 to start.

I have dreams of moving all of this onto some pretty irrigated land with a view of our gorgeous mountains and offer cheese tasting and picnic grounds along with an agricultural education center and gardens and orchards. But I am 55 years old so lets be realistic and start with a small dairy and see if I have the financial means to do the rest. Dreams are what keep me going day by day.