PJ Phelan: Why beef/sheep farmers should partner up with tillage farmers and plant crops
The livestock farmer would provide the land and the tillage farmer would provide all the machinery, expertise and labour – and the profits would be shared
Sheep forage in wheat fields after the harvest. Photo: Getty
The two main challenges facing tillage farmers are the maintenance/increase in cropland area and the sourcing of adequate quantities of seed for 2024.
Despite the downturn in profits from dairying, tillage farmers cannot compete financially for land. And every reduction in sown area will result in an increase in overhead costs per acre and a decrease in tillage farm viability. That is particularly acute where most of the machinery is owned.
