Get out your crystal ball

[rookie]

Some days I hope this monitor is that crystal ball... But I would also have to say I am optomistic about farming. I have worked off farm for 15 years now and so far nothing off farm has made me change my mind about trying to make a go of it. Nothing yet...

[cowman]

And boys, I firmly believe that in places like Manitoba and Sask. you can still go farming and make it! If I was 20 years younger and in better health I would definitely be out there. Now having said that I don't think I would sell my farm here...it would be worse than selling my kids!
Yes this is productive land but what drives the price around here is a booming oil and gas industry as well as a huge petro-chemical industry. When the "grunts" in the petro plants are making $100,000 a year there is a lot of money for hobbies.

[crazeeakerz]

My wife and I are at the stage in life where we are seriously looking at selling the cattle. After last years drought when we harvested less than half the usual hay crop, we are thinking that now is the time to quit before we are hit by another bad year. This spring has been hard on calving and I know many other producers in Alberta had big losses. With pasture and hay land at a premium, the only logical way for us is to rent out our land. We could sell but don't wish to move to town yet. As with other sectors of agriculture, small operations are giving way to large. Let the big operators who have financial backing take on the market place. There is not much room left for underfinanced small farms. The facts speak for themselves as so many of the previous contributors pointed out.Unless a person is independently wealthy, there is just not enough return for your investment in agriculture any more to support the risk.

[cowman]

krazeakerz: I suspect there are thousands who are facing the same dilemma as yourself and coming to the same conclusion. The small commercial cow/calf man is becoming a rare breed. I'm not talking about the hobby farmer who has 10 cows...they will always be around. For me it is a sad thing to see but times change and suddenly all the farmers are old and the young ones are few and far between. How did this situation sneak up on us? And when guys like you and me are gone what next? Will all the cow herds have to be 1000 head? And will they make any money either? What happens when the day comes that the government decides to let in the garbage from Brazil and Argentina? That will be the end of the cattle business in the west. What are we going to do with all the land? I mean you can only build so many acreages right? And if we can't afford to grow grain on the good land we sure don't need to break up the poor. Maybe it will revert back to a buffalo pasture!
The decision to sell our cattle is never an easy one. They've probably been a big part of your life. I guess all anyone can say is we all are in the same boat and if not today then probably tommorrow we'll face the same decision.
But everything comes to an end and change is always tough. But maybe it's better, now, when we can still exit the industry with a few bucks and a few good years rather than completely broke and wore out??