Verified FBN Member (IL)

General

How much should I charge a neighbor cattle farmer wanting to chop 14 of silage of our corn?

I have a neighbor cattle farmer who asked me the other day if I would be interested in selling him 12-14 of silage for his cattle. Has a custom chopper come do it and bag it. So I’m wanting to know first if this would be at all to my benefit and if so what I should charge him for it?

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Verified FBN Member (AB, CAN)

Not one dollar less then 55 per ton


Verified FBN Member (KS)

I let a local feedlot chop one of my fields. It appraised over 230 bu/ac. It chopped around 16 tons before adjusting for moisture. Did not turn out well for me. It was a grain corn not a good silage hybrid.


Have them pay on appraised bushels or leave strips to harvest with combine. Some dairies do it this way.


Verified FBN Member (WI)

What’s price of corn in your area. I have lot of experience with my growers in Wisconsin


Verified FBN Member (MN)

We do yield checks on corn left in the field and sell them the corn at market price and then they haul manure back on to make up for taking the stocks so 175*$3.15=$551.25 per Acre

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Verified FBN Member (IA)

(edited)

They figure 8 bushel of corn(that you don’t have to dry or store) in a ton of good silage. Like the others said. A lot of P,K,sulfur leave the field, too.

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Verified FBN Member (TX)

We get paid 12 times December corn futures here. We pay chopping and hauling to the feedyard. Ex: December corn $3.61 X 12 = $43.32/ton I figure chopping and hauling averages $10/ton giving you net price of $33.32/ton. We are in an area with lots of feedyards and dairies so forage prices are probably higher here than other places.

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Verified FBN Member (SD)

I sell silage to the local dairy. They custom chop and haul to their site. I only grow the crop.

They pay me 8 times the local cash price. So $3.20 local cash times 8 pays me $25.60/ton.

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Verified FBN Member (IL)

OK, I will have to admit i'm a young farmer starting out and the basis and marketing side of things is what is probably my weak point which main reason for joining FBN. But could you maybe explain what the response was from above. Hindsight is always 20/20 wish I would've taken more finance and marketing classes in college instead of all science and agronomy. Thanks for the response though


Verified FBN Member (KS)

8 times the board price of corn basis December

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