Bag it..

[Partners]

Now that is a price.

[foragefarmer]

Now that is a price.

Good for Dinsmore Farms $300.00/bushel retail.

Farmers going the extra mile to make money. Why not!

[TSIPP]

Extra mile to sell a few bushels, I wonder what markup the store has.

[TSIPP]

Kinda looks like the fan speed on the cleaner needs a few more RPM.

[Guest]

doesn't even say orgasmic ?

[blackpowder]

Likely dessication free.

[Sheepwheat]

Extra mile to sell a few bushels, I wonder what markup the store has.

Depending on the store, 10 to 30%.

[fjlip]

So $210 / bu to farmer, $90 to retail. Sounds like all other SCREW jobs farmers get.

[Sheepwheat]

So $210 / bu to farmer, $90 to retail. Sounds like all other SCREW jobs farmers get.

If it’s coop, they take 12 to 15%. Specialty stores will take up to thirty %, but usually it’s between 15 and 25%.

When we sell to stores that take commission,, we build in what we want to net, and ensure after commission we are still there. I presume the farm did the same thing.

When we sell to stores wholesale, we ensure our wholesale price is what we want to net. What the store tacks on is up to them.

[Sheepwheat]

The other thing to remember is that stores may sit there on retain products taking up valuable space for a month or three. Some gets tossed, packages break, they pay shipping costs, employees need pay, and on and on. There is a reason ma and pa small town groceries went away, it is so tight a margin. Food has a low margin relatively.

Not meaning to defend the stores, I just have learned how it works better.

Of that bag of wheat, the store may get from 50 cents to maybe a dollar.

[Herc]

Of that bag of wheat, the store may get from 50 cents to maybe a dollar.

You see 50 cents to a dollar, I see $30 to $60/bushel……..

[Sheepwheat]

You see 50 cents to a dollar, I see $30 to $60/bushel……..

And the farmer supplying it is still getting 250 to 270 a bushel. And he maybe sells what? Twenty bushels? The store isn’t buying bushels, they are buying units. And from my grocery manager friend, wheat in bags, is not something they move many units of at all. Mostly because there are specialty stores that do it and have way more variety of grains, and above all the grains have a story on every bag. Consumers that want local food, trust, me, they buy the story as much as the product. It’s really funny. We a farmers are often as out of touch with their needs, a they are with farming. Gotta find that balance.

The best thing? When we fill an order for the stores we supply, guess who pays the shipping? It’s a sweet thing, and I’m still not used to it!

[AlbertaFarmer5]

And the farmer supplying it is still getting 250 to 270 a bushel. And he maybe sells what? Twenty bushels? The store isn’t buying bushels, they are buying units. And from my grocery manager friend, wheat in bags, is not something they move many units of at all. Mostly because there are specialty stores that do it and have way more variety of grains, and above all the grains have a story on every bag. Consumers that want local food, trust, me, they buy the story as much as the product. It’s really funny. We a farmers are often as out of touch with their needs, a they are with farming. Gotta find that balance.

The best thing? When we fill an order for the stores we supply, guess who pays the shipping? It’s a sweet thing, and I’m still not used to it!

Something else that needs to be built into that margin is the possibility of a recall I would assume? Maybe not applicable to the wheat, but with the meat you are selling a lot can go wrong.
If a batch of meat should get contaminated, or spoiled on its way from A to B, who would end up being responsible?
I can't imagine a retailer selling a product on 10% margins, and then being responsible for a food recall.
Is that something that is written in to your contracts?

[Sheepwheat]

Something else that needs to be built into that margin is the possibility of a recall I would assume? Maybe not applicable to the wheat, but with the meat you are selling a lot can go wrong.
If a batch of meat should get contaminated, or spoiled on its way from A to B, who would end up being responsible?
I can't imagine a retailer selling a product on 10% margins, and then being responsible for a food recall.
Is that something that is written in to your contracts?

So far we haven’t had an actual contract with anybody. They just make a purchase order when they need more product. We’ve approached federated, but they told us they already have enough lamb. I be like, huh? Where? They talk the talk of supporting local farmers, but nope. Haven’t given up though. And do you have the diversity of products we carry? Not a chance. Frustrating. It would be a great outlet. I assume they would do a contract.

Frozen meats have a lot of freedoms relative to fresh. But yeah, we have a hefty insurance policy. It also MUST BE PROCESSED at an inspected plant. All buyers ask for a copy of your insurance policy, and they all ensure they have the info on the facility where it is processed. If it is damaged in transit? The transit company would have insurance for that. If it’s in the back of our vehicle? We have insurance for that. At the store? Same thing. We have insurance on our frozen inventory for power outages etc.

And then it depends on the product. Is it marinated? Is it plain meat? Is it actually gluten free if you say it is? Back that up if so. If it has added ingredients these need to be done at an inspected facility, on and on it goes. Some buyers need nutrient labels, all need ingredients lists. These labels have to be a certain size, and at least a certain font.

It’s been a learning curve but it’s been awesome. Just awesome.

[Sheepwheat]

A fair number of our packages are vac sealed. A certain per cent age of those blow, especially with bone in cuts. On our next round, we pick up the broken seal ones and eat them or sell them to friends who don’t care if the seal is broken. Either way, that is the lamb we eat. It makes far more sense for us to sell lamb and buy beef. But we do eat a lot of lamb, and not just broken seals!