Post by rence on Oct 21, 2008 3:09:52 GMT -5
Is it cheaper or more expensive to raise your own food?
I'm even willing to disregard *some* start up costs, however uneconomical that is, or not. I figure, if you're wanting to change the way you live, just like anything else, you'll have to invest in startup costs, and hopefully you'll only have to do it once...and once's it's gone, it's gone- for practical purposes, you make the investment and then you really are looking at maintenance costs...right? Ok, I'm stupid that way. And sometimes I don't have much start up costs
But I'm trying to transition towards being more and more self sufficient, for a variety of reasons.
For example, we bought a doe and buck rabbit this weekend: I traded the rabbits for four chickens, and I traded two cages with feeders for eight chickens, and I bought two water bottles and a bag of feed. We're going to convert a brooder to a rabbit hut, so we're recycling some stuff. So my start up for the rabbits is $22.17 and I'm going to be learning how to butcher the rabbits (for free) in the next few weeks. So I'm thinking that it will be very economical to raise our own rabbits for the family for meat. Plus, the rabbit berries will be going into the garden...
I would like to start raising chicken for meat. I already have housing...so in my non-economic little mind, I'm thinking my cost will be the chicks and feed. Plus, if I spare a rooster and a hen, I can hatch another batch (I already have equipment for that). So is raising chickens for meat more economical or more expensive?
Now the chickens we raise for eggs was getting expensive. We had too many chickens (that's why I'm bardering some of them) and was getting too many eggs and even wasted them. So I think that downsizing the flock will be more cost efficient.
So...you all who have been doing this: is it more cost effective to raise your own food, or to just buy it?
-Rence
I'm even willing to disregard *some* start up costs, however uneconomical that is, or not. I figure, if you're wanting to change the way you live, just like anything else, you'll have to invest in startup costs, and hopefully you'll only have to do it once...and once's it's gone, it's gone- for practical purposes, you make the investment and then you really are looking at maintenance costs...right? Ok, I'm stupid that way. And sometimes I don't have much start up costs
But I'm trying to transition towards being more and more self sufficient, for a variety of reasons.
For example, we bought a doe and buck rabbit this weekend: I traded the rabbits for four chickens, and I traded two cages with feeders for eight chickens, and I bought two water bottles and a bag of feed. We're going to convert a brooder to a rabbit hut, so we're recycling some stuff. So my start up for the rabbits is $22.17 and I'm going to be learning how to butcher the rabbits (for free) in the next few weeks. So I'm thinking that it will be very economical to raise our own rabbits for the family for meat. Plus, the rabbit berries will be going into the garden...
I would like to start raising chicken for meat. I already have housing...so in my non-economic little mind, I'm thinking my cost will be the chicks and feed. Plus, if I spare a rooster and a hen, I can hatch another batch (I already have equipment for that). So is raising chickens for meat more economical or more expensive?
Now the chickens we raise for eggs was getting expensive. We had too many chickens (that's why I'm bardering some of them) and was getting too many eggs and even wasted them. So I think that downsizing the flock will be more cost efficient.
So...you all who have been doing this: is it more cost effective to raise your own food, or to just buy it?
-Rence