Animals will bring considerable income, since milk can be used to make butter, cheese and other fermented milk products, freeze meat, sell it fresh, or cover a stew. Another option for generating income is raising and reselling young animals. The first step of a novice farmer is a thorough analysis of the slightest nuances of the future business.
Before understanding how to breed cows, it is necessary to understand the ultimate goals of this action.
Cows are distinguished by their large size, good appetite (they consume a lot of feed) and demanding conditions in their place of stay, but all these aspects are quickly covered by finished products.
Life expectancy of 1 cow is more than 25 years. It takes at least 5 years for a calf to grow into a full-fledged and healthy animal. The average weight of cows living in households is 600 kg, on farms – 400 kg.
What features should be taken into account? In the first place are the rules of care in different seasons. Throughout the year, animals need to create optimal living conditions (maintain temperature, humidity). It is necessary to feed and milk the cattle, observing the regime. A paddock should be equipped for walking, but it is preferable to take the cows out to pasture (meadows, fields) in the warm season.
One of important aspects for breeding cows - know the main diseases and first aid methods.
How much land does 1 cow need? The area required for sowing grain is 0.60 hectares, perennial grasses are 0.60 hectares, silage crops are 0.20 hectares, vegetables are 0.06 hectares. On average, 1 cow accounts for 1 hectare of land.
When taking into account the supply of hay for the winter, another 1 hectare is added. So, 1 cattle will require up to 2 hectares of water meadow. If the field is not fertile, this figure may increase further.
The best option for maintenance is an old farm. Building a building from scratch is not an economically viable option. An alternative is to rent a ready-made barn.
The premises should be located away from residential buildings and water sources. According to sanitary standards, the minimum distance to the house is 15 meters, to the wells - 20 meters. It is preferable that it be located next to the garden (manure disposal).
If you decide to build a barn yourself, pay attention to the materials. Brick or foam concrete are suitable for construction - they retain heat well. It is advisable to make the floor from cement - it is durable and hygienic. Wood is not recommended, as the material absorbs odors and rots quickly.
If there are a large number of animals, it is necessary to equip stalls. For comfortable keeping of 1 cow, 2 sq.m. is enough. Be sure to make a slope for waste drainage. The stall should have a separate door for cleaning (located on the opposite side of the feeder).
If you want to receive large volumes of milk, consider the water supply and purchase milking systems. It is more profitable to buy a special device than to regularly pay milkmaids.
A useful addition to a barn is a loft. This is a convenient place to store hay. It will also allow for additional insulation of the ceiling.
The first rule is that the breed must meet the designated purpose of the business (meat, dairy). When purchasing, find out about the productive qualities of the parents. It is recommended to purchase purebred breeds, since crossbred individuals lose important characteristics. Pay attention to your body type:
The purchase of calves is carried out with an identical goal: compliance of the breed with business goals. Young animals of the dairy breed are distinguished by long legs and a bony body structure, with a light head. The tail of such calves is long (to the middle or below the hock).
Beef calves are characterized by short legs, a heavy head, a small tail size and a “knocked down” physique. To obtain meat, farmers recommend buying bulls, since they gain weight more quickly, and their meat is less fatty.
Common factors for young animals of any orientation are a moist nose, shiny coat and no symptoms of stomach upset (signs of health).
In addition, farmers involved in the production of dairy products often choose the Red Steppe breed of cows. You can read more about this breed.
Which meat breeds should you pay attention to? In first place is Ukrainian meat. Up to 65% meat and skin are sold. Cows are unpretentious to food and quickly gain weight. Also on the list are Aberdeen Angus (60% meat) and elite breed Charolais (for bacon).
Cows are herd animals; there should be several of them on the farm. In the summer, cows need to be sent to walking areas. In winter, cows can live in a warm room with constant light. For them, daily walking is recommended even in the cold season (cancelled when the thermometer reaches -15).
Remember that cows are fastidious animals: dampness and heat cause problems with milk and slow down weight gain. The optimal temperature in the barn is no higher than 20 degrees.
It is important to protect the building from drafts. For ventilation, it is recommended to make a pipe from boards (dimensions 15 by 15 cm) and bring it above the ridge. A system of opening windows should be considered (openings should be higher than 1.2 m from the floor level).
The diet should include hay, feed and various baits(seasonal vegetables, seeds, grass). A cow needs from 9 to 14 kg of hay per day. Remember, if an animal eats low-quality hay, the milk will taste bitter.
It is useful to include flax and sunflower cake and oats in the diet. Also, the products should replenish the supply of carbohydrates - it is necessary to give the cows fodder beets, carrots, potatoes, and corn silage. Farmers recommend adding urea (carbamide) to the feed to enrich the stomach.
Sexual age of heifers is 8 months, physiological maturity occurs at 18 months. Live weight by this period reaches 300 kg. Female cows have a sexual cycle that repeats every 21 days.
For proper insemination, mating must be done 10-12 hours before feeding. The duration of pregnancy is 285 days. In the second half of the term, fetal movements are observed in the right side of the abdomen. In the last month of pregnancy, you need to stop milking the cow (give physiological rest).
It is important to provide pregnant cows with a balanced diet. Their diet should include hay, succulent feed, concentrates and mineral supplements (chalk, salt, flour).
Signs that labor has begun - the cow looks at her belly, moos loudly, and stomps her hooves. The owner needs to treat the paws, tail and genitals with potassium permanganate and wipe with a towel. Cows usually do not need other human assistance when calving.
The first action of a novice businessman is to find out the presence of competitors. You need to open a farm far from identical points. Another aspect is identifying demand, analyzing and establishing sales points.
You can supply products to markets, stores, and factories. To expand your business, it is advisable to find a sales market in neighboring cities.
If your farm has 2-3 cows, business registration is not needed. If livestock breeding is planned on a farm scale, registration is necessary (in the future, it is necessary to obtain certificates of product quality). Also, official registration will help you take out a preferential government loan if your own funds are not enough to develop your business.
It is recommended to involve residents of the village in which the farm is located. In the list of main vacancies:
At the initial stages, the farm owner can serve as a manager and accountant.
The total amount for opening such a business is no less than 650,000 rubles. Costs will include equipment (construction) of a barn, purchase of cattle, registration of activities and payments to employees.
Additional expenses may be necessary to optimize the business: purchasing devices for feeding feed, water or waste removal, constructing a building for a slaughterhouse.
On average, with a livestock size of 10-15 individuals per month, you can get up to 2 thousand liters of milk and 200 kg of meat. Sales of milk will bring up to 1,000,000 rubles, meat – more than 1,200,000 rubles. Additional income will come from the sale of manure. The investment will fully pay off within 10-12 months after opening the business..
Next, you will learn how to make a business plan for raising cows for meat or dairy cattle for a farming business.
A business plan is a clear and consistent presentation of ideas, strategies, possible risks and results. It is necessary to define the areas of activity, as well as:
It is better to think through and draw up a business plan with the involvement of specialists (experienced farmers, lawyers). It is important to accurately define goals and identify all possible problems to minimize their impact on the process.
Breeding cows is a profitable business, since food products will always be in demand on the market. When opening your own business, you need to choose the right location and buy suitable breeds of cows. In the future, proper care will bring success to the business and profit to the owner.
Find out where to start farming business on breeding cows, you can also see this video:
According to the estimated set of consumer baskets approved for 2016, the consumption rate of meat and meat products for the average Russian is about 60 kg per year, milk and dairy products - about 300 kg per year. Actual figures are usually an order of magnitude higher. If you look at these figures from the perspective of not a consumer, but an entrepreneur, you can see a favorable ratio and the opportunity to make good money in the production of meat and dairy products.
When the preparatory stage has been completed and suitable conditions have been created for the animals, young animals can be purchased. Let's consider sample business plan breeding cows using the example of the most common dairy breed in Russia - black and white.
To start a small home farm, you can purchase 4 heifers and 1 bull. Calves must be purchased from large farms. Healthy, normally developed animals bred from highly productive cows should be selected. The suitable age of a cow for forming a herd is 1.5 years, when the animal reaches sexual maturity.
The cost of a one and a half year old heifer is about 12 thousand rubles, a bull - 18 thousand rubles.
Thus, it will cost you 66 thousand rubles to purchase young animals.
Cows will require mandatory vaccination against various diseases, and periodic testing for brucellosis and tuberculosis must be carried out. About 5 thousand rubles will be spent on veterinarian services per year.
One of the most important issues in livestock farming is the organization of feeding at different times of the year. In summer, the bulk of a cow's diet should be fresh grass. In winter, the animal must be fed with pre-prepared hay, silage, vegetables (beets, carrots, potatoes), and mixed feed.
Feed consumption rate calculated for one cow per year:
It turns out that in order to feed one cow for a year it will take about 41 thousand rubles. You can save money if the farmer has his own land, which can be used as pasture in the summer and sown with grass for hay.
Attention! It is imperative that a cow be given at least 100 g of salt per day. This will help maintain the acid-salt balance in the animal’s body.
In order to milk cows 2 times a day, you should purchase a special machine, which will cost approximately 27 thousand rubles. However, you can save on this point if you organize the process manually.
If you do the calculations, it turns out that it will take the entrepreneur about 300 thousand rubles to launch a small farm for breeding cows and the first year of work.
The farm will begin to generate real income only by the end of the first, and more often - in the second year of its existence.
A cow can give birth once a year in the amount of 1 calf. Lactation lasts on average 300 days. Moreover, in the first time after calving (2-3 months), 50% of the cow's milk will be used to fatten the calf.
On average, 1 cow produces 10 liters of milk per day. Thus, during the first 90 days of the lactation period, the farmer will be able to sell about 5 liters of milk per day from one cow. From four cows – 20 liters respectively.
The remaining 210 days for sales will take all 10 liters per day from one cow, which means 40 liters from the entire farm.
Average price whole cow's milk is 60 rubles in 2016. for 1 liter.
Consequently, in one lactation the farmer will be able to earn 153 thousand rubles. from one animal and 612 thousand rubles. from all livestock. And this is only when selling the primary product, that is, milk. If you engage in the production and sale of cream, sour cream, cottage cheese and butter, your income may increase.
In addition, the calves brought in can either be sold as young animals or fattened and slaughtered with subsequent sale of beef. At the same time, young animals can be sold immediately after weaning from the cow, and raising calves for meat will require about another year of fattening.
Attention! The average weight of a dairy cow at one year of age is 300 kg, and that of a bull can reach up to 400 kg. The slaughter yield of beef is approximately 50%. Price for 1 kg – 300 rub. That is, from the sale of meat you can earn from 45 thousand rubles. up to 60 thousand rubles.
If we compare the costs of maintaining a farm and possible revenue, it turns out that cow breeding is like - profitable occupation, which, although it doesn’t pay for itself so quickly, brings a lot of money in the future and has many development options.
Activities in the field agriculture Today, it is also beneficial because every farmer has the potential opportunity to receive real assistance in developing their farm from the state.
Thus, every year considerable funds are allocated from the federal budget for promotion in the regions target program on the development of family livestock farms based on peasant farms. As part of this program, entrepreneurs are allocated:
To participate in the competition, a farmer must fulfill a number of requirements, more details of which can be found in the regional authority of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Raising beef and dairy cows for sale is very profitable business, especially if you manage to put this thing on stream. In addition, breeding and selling cows will not require large expenses from the owner of the enterprise, which any novice entrepreneur is afraid of. But, at the same time, we must not forget that beef cattle breeding in itself is cheaper than dairy farming. Although the second does not require any supernatural financial investments.
A cow business can only become successful if its owner has the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities. It is simply impossible to start breeding animals without the slightest idea of what is happening in the complex, and without having a strategy. Accordingly, before opening such a business, you need to study not only the features of breeding animals of a given species and specific breeds, but also the following points:
When the topic is fully studied, it will be possible to start breeding cows as a business. It first of all involves the creation of an enterprise for which you will need:
A production facility for cows usually has an area of 30x6 m. It is best that it be located in rural areas, and it is even preferable to be in close proximity to other agricultural enterprises, for example, those involved in growing plants. Those enterprises that are located next to fields and vegetable gardens will have a better chance of selling manure successfully and without much difficulty. Besides production premises, it is necessary to build a heated room in which the cows will be bred directly. To accommodate 30 heads of cattle, it will be enough to have an area of 180-200 square meters. m.
To open a complex for breeding cows for sale, you need to register as an individual entrepreneur according to OKVED code 01.2 (livestock). For doing business and convenient work, it is preferable to choose a simplified taxation system, which involves withholding 6% tax on the gross income of the enterprise.
When creating a business, you need to think not only about potential future consumers, but also about competitors. That is, the complex must be located in such a way that there are no similar producers of meat or dairy products, large or small complexes for breeding cows for sale nearby, whose main activity is also breeding cows at home.
The total amount that an entrepreneur may need as an initial investment in a business is 600-700 thousand rubles. It is quite possible to borrow this money, and it will be spent on the following:
At the initial stage, another 20 thousand rubles should be planned for paying workers. For an opening enterprise, initially you will need only two general workers, whose average monthly salary can be calculated at 10 thousand rubles. It is assumed that in the coming months, workers' salaries can be allocated from the profits already received from the business.
We must also not forget about the special equipment that will be required when breeding cows on a large scale, in particular milking machines. Cow breeding as a business almost always brings its owner a stable income, so this kind of enterprise is already considered profitable. If we talk about specific figures that an entrepreneur can count on, here are the approximate prices for the products sold:
It is assumed that with the number of livestock indicated above, it will be possible to sell 300 kilograms of meat and 2-2.5 thousand liters of milk per month. Thus, the profit can be 50-75 thousand rubles if you sell meat, and 48-70 thousand rubles if you sell milk. Consequently, the annual income of the enterprise in this case will be 600-900 thousand rubles when selling meat, or 570-850 thousand rubles when selling milk.
Every year, 60 thousand rubles will be spent on purchasing feed, and 240 thousand rubles will be spent on paying workers. If the land plot for the construction of a complex for breeding cows was leased, then certain expenses must be planned to pay for it. Another class of costs is public utilities. But both rent and utility bills will be different in each specific case, so it is impossible to give any figures in advance.
Purely theoretically, in general view and complexity, half of the total income of the enterprise will remain as net income from the business of breeding cows for sale. These amounts will be enough to easily recoup the initial investments made in it within 1.5-2 years from the start of the business and gradually begin to expand. Natural business expansion in this case means a gradual increase in the number of cattle, entry into ever new, larger markets and a systematic increase in the level of profitability of the enterprise.
The initial organization of any business requires certain actions. These include an adequate assessment of one’s own strengths and capabilities (breeding calves requires dedication and time). It is also important to take into account the conditions of the region, since raising large animals requires large areas. It is impossible to organize the process in urban areas.
When planning meat supplies to facilities catering and shops will require mandatory business registration.
An important question on which the specifics of the case depend: “What does the farmer choose: purchasing young stock or independent?” Buying individuals eliminates a number of problems:
REFERENCE! In order for the bull to gain weight, optimal housing conditions must be created. Growth and development will depend on the amenities created.
Calves should only be kept in dry barns. The stalls must have a dense and reliable floor. Daily housekeeping is required. It is recommended to clean the floor with a stiff brush, and during warm periods, rinse it with running water.
The activity is specific. Calves need to be actively fed until a certain age, then slaughtered(or sell live weight). The peculiarity of the business is small investments.
The main difficulties are associated with the expenditure of effort and time on caring for animals. There are usually no problems with the sale of meat products: a wide market allows you to quickly sell the finished product.
Among the features of keeping bulls are the following:
The growth period of meat for slaughter is from 12 to 20 months. The average weight of one bull is 350 kg. The cost of meat and profit margins will depend on the conditions of each specific region. The business will fully pay off in 1-2 years. The work will generate income only if implemented correctly. People who are not afraid of physical labor should start such a business.
ADVICE! If you sell meat directly to stores or restaurants, your income will be significantly higher than when selling to wholesalers.
The preferred area for raising beef bulls is a plot with a large and free area of land. This could be a mini-farm, an old dacha, a private farmstead. There must be a place for organizing the corral and walking of livestock.
In the summer, animals will begin to actively gain weight - this will require daily walking (keeping them in a stall will increase aggressiveness and cause illness). There should be meadows or fields for grazing near the barn.
Area per head – 10 sq.m. (including food storage space). Brick or slab (inexpensive but high-quality material) is suitable for building a shed. From an economic point of view, it is more profitable to rent a ready-made complex with everything you need.
Bulls are clean animals, so The barn needs to be arranged so that it is easy to clean. Attention should also be paid to the selected area: water should not accumulate on it.
The characteristics of a suitable building are warmth (not lower than 8 degrees), good ventilation and the possibility of ventilation. Drafts are strictly prohibited - they provoke illness. When the herd size is more than 10 heads, it is better to automate the process of supplying water and feed.
It is important that animals have constant free access to feeders and drinkers (but it is not advisable to place them on the floor; the optimal height is 8-10 cm from the floor level). To purify the air inside the building, farmers use ash - it absorbs ammonia and gases. You can pour it on paths or put it in boxes.
When choosing a breed, you need to consider several important indicators:
When selecting individuals, you should pay attention to weight (optimal 90-100 kg) and age.
It is preferable to purchase young animals from special farms that engage in breeding. You can also purchase calves from breeding breeders.
Dairy bulls have a low purchase price (they need to be fed milk for up to 3 months).
Some cultivation features and the payback period depend on the breed. Farmers recommend buying fast-growing young animals, but not forgetting about the taste characteristics of the meat.
Before choosing a breed, you need to find out which individuals are suitable for keeping in the region of residence (expensive breeding bulls may not take root in a certain area). List of the best breeds:
Young animals must be kept separately from adult bulls (a separate barn must be built for calves). It is allowed to keep bulls with cows - this way the temperament of the males will be calmer.
In summer it is possible to keep bulls under open air, but the pens will need to be additionally equipped with special plastic booths. Manure is removed 3 times a day, immediately after feeding.
IMPORTANT! Hoof horn growth should be monitored. Hoofs need to be trimmed and trimmed twice a year.
The walking area should be fenced with the strongest possible materials. Adult bulls can be released outside if they have a special stick and leash. The stick is secured in the nose ring of the individual. It is not recommended to walk with females or young animals at the same time.
In productive bulls the meat content is not less than 70%. To achieve this result, you need to provide intensive feeding. You won’t achieve high results with hay and succulent grasses: The following products must be present in the diet:
Adding concentrates will replenish the body's supply of vitamins and microelements. The basis of the winter diet is hay, mixed feed and root vegetables. In summer, the main product is juicy and fresh grass. Individuals must spend at least 15 hours on pasture.
How to breed bulls? A breeding bull impregnates up to 50 cows per year. You can keep it on your own farm or use the services (manual mating - a cow is brought to the bull). When individuals of different breeds mate, crossing or crossbreeding occurs. Among natural reproduction technologies:
Pay attention! Today, natural reproduction methods are practically not used.
Selling meat is a profitable business that will provide a stable income. The main model of activity is to rent a plot and purchase young animals, raise them and then sell them.
To be profitable, the herd size should not be less than 10 heads. It is especially important to create suitable housing conditions and maintain a balanced diet for animals. Up to 15 heads can be handled on your own; over 15, you will need hired personnel.
Business registration – prerequisite for sales and supplies. The farmer becomes individual entrepreneur and receives the appropriate quality certificates. Several other options are suitable for design:
As assistants you need to choose people who know how and love to look after animals. It is also important to pay attention to personal qualities(responsibility, discipline).
For a herd of 20 bulls, 2-3 assistants are enough. Be sure to have a veterinarian on staff. This may be a permanent position or a visiting specialist.
Initial costs go towards setting up a barn, purchasing young animals and purchasing feed. On average, to open a farm and form a herd of 20 heads, you will need up to 500 thousand rubles.
Feed costs will amount to up to 20 thousand per year per bull. Additional expenses will appear later: a mini-tractor, a refrigerator, automatic feeders.
Attention! The initial investment will pay off in 16-18 months. The average amount of net profit is from 400 thousand per year.
The document contains the goal, directions of activity, calculation of costs and profits. A business plan for raising bull calves for meat, breeding and maintaining a herd of 20 heads includes the following expenses:
Is it profitable to raise bulls for meat? Income is calculated based on current prices. The expected amount and period of partial and full payback are necessarily included in the business strategy.
Raising calves for meat is an economically profitable enterprise. Remember that such activities require time, expense and physical effort. At proper organization and reasonable distribution of processes, you can establish a client base and receive a stable profit.
Watch a video about raising bulls for meat:
Cattle breeding is rightfully considered a fairly profitable business. Regardless of what type of business is chosen: dairy or meat, the entrepreneur will not need large additional financial expenses, which scare off novice businessmen. You can start a business by thoroughly studying the necessary literature, obtaining the necessary knowledge and skills, and also acquiring the most valuable skills. Before starting your own business, you need to very carefully study the features of the development of cattle in the chosen region.
An aspiring entrepreneur must fully understand the essence of the idea and find answers to the following questions:
Having received answers to all the questions posed, it is necessary to decide in which area of cattle breeding the enterprise will work:
Having understood all the necessary issues, you can start breeding cows as a business. To create an enterprise you need:
It is advisable to build a cowshed in a rural area. Farms abandoned since Soviet times are perfect for such premises. The area of the production premises should reach 30x6 meters.
The heated room where livestock breeding will take place must have an area of 180 - 200 square meters for 30 cows.
It is better to start a business with a small number of cows in order to assess its prospects and, if profitable, it is possible to gradually increase the number of cows.
When choosing a location, it is recommended to give preference to areas close to agricultural enterprises. When located near enterprises that grow plants, the chances increase that the manure marketing process will be well established.
When purchasing young animals, you need to choose dairy or meat breeds depending on the chosen direction of the enterprise.
barn - a room for raising bulls If you decide to build a milk business, then the following features will help you choose good dairy breeds:
If you are planning to start a cow business meat breeds, then you need to know what the basic requirements are for the selection of productive breeds:
Breeding cows for the purpose of selling young animals is much less common. This type of business is very profitable, but it is the most difficult and painstaking.
To create an enterprise to breed cows as a business, one cannot do without formalities. For this purpose, it is necessary to register an individual entrepreneur under OKVED code 01.2 (livestock husbandry). For this type of business, you can choose a simplified taxation system. The choice of such a system involves withholding 6% tax from the total income of the enterprise.
When organizing a business, you need to correctly assess the positions of competitors. It is best to locate the complex away from such enterprises.
It is also necessary to analyze the market in advance and select points of sale for products. These can be large markets, retail outlets in nearby settlements, dairies, meat processing plants, or small organizations that buy products for the purpose of their further resale. It is necessary to sign a cooperation agreement with them.
For initial investment in a business, an entrepreneur will need about 600 - 700 thousand rubles. For this amount, you can get a loan from a bank by submitting a business plan for breeding cows. First of all, it should indicate the direction entrepreneurial activity and the profitability and payback of the business were calculated.
This amount is made up of several components:
At first, an entrepreneur will only need two handymen. Average wages can be set around 10 thousand rubles. For subsequent months, money for workers' wages can be allocated from the profits received.
It is worth remembering that as the scale of cow breeding production increases in the future, special additional equipment. To properly organize the work of the barn, it is necessary to purchase additional equipment: machines for feeding, packaging feed and for collecting manure. It would also be wise to organize your own slaughterhouse in a separate room.
The cow breeding business is obviously considered profitable, because the entrepreneur receives a stable income from it every month. In order to estimate the upcoming profit, it is enough to indicate the estimated approximate price for the products sold:
Based on these approximate prices and taking into account the given number of heads indicated above, on average 2–2.5 thousand liters of milk and about 300 kilograms of meat can be sold per month. The profit from selling milk per month will be 48 – 70 thousand rubles, and the total profit for the year will be 570 – 850 thousand rubles. The profit from selling meat per month will be 50–75 thousand rubles, and the annual income will be 600–900 thousand rubles.
To buy food for a year you will need about 60 thousand rubles. It is important that cows receive adequate feed. In the summer months, they are recommended to graze in the meadow, and in the winter months, they are fed with purchased food, such as dry hay or compound feed. Do not forget about modern vitamin supplements, which must be introduced into the food of cows to compensate for the deficiency of vitamins and microelements.
Paying general workers will cost the entrepreneur 240 thousand per year. The price of rent and utility bills, due to their individual calculation, is not possible to calculate.
Having made theoretical calculations, net profit will be half of the enterprise's income. This amount will be quite enough to cover the initial investment for 1.5 - 2 years of business operation. In the future, you can develop the enterprise by carrying out a natural expansion of the business, gradually increasing the number of livestock, establishing access to new large markets, and thereby raising the level of profitability of the enterprise.
