How do you make extra income from your backyard or farm?

[farmersteve]

Do you live on a small farm? Or do you live in the city and use your backyard to make extra income? Is there something on your farm that you never thought of using to make extra income? Well, I am going to give you some ideas on how to take your small farm and monetize it. Here are a few examples of how I make money on my farm. I have no doubt that you can also make extra income from something that you enjoy doing.

Do you have chickens? Ever thought about selling farm fresh eggs? My neighbors are always putting in an order for farm fresh eggs. I sell an average of 20 dozen per week at $2.25 per dozen! I started out with one customer, and by word of mouth, I now have about 15 weekly customers and that number continues to grow. I now need to increase my laying hens.

Do you have a small garden? Ever think about selling farm fresh produce? I sell fresh tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, squash, cucumbers and much more. I do this right from my farm. I have no need to go to the farmers market. Once you build a good reputation with your neighbors, the word gets out and you will have more demand then you can supply. Everyone wants fresh farm products and really do want to support their local farmers. It’s a win-win solution for everyone.

Do you have a milk cow? Sell fresh farm milk to your neighbors! Or maybe you have plenty of timber for firewood? There are many ways to optimize your small farm and learn how to live a more self sufficient healthy lifestyle at the same time.

I could keep going, but I think you get the point. All of these hobbies can really add up and everyone benefits.

[Annpan]

That is all fine as long as either
a. You can afford the relevant tests, inoculations, registration fees, taxes and paperwork involved to sell anything edible.
b. Can do it all under the radar, hoping to never be discovered

Here in Britain there are all kinds of horrendous bureaucracy about any money making enterprise, especially when it comes to food.... *sigh*

[ina]

Farmer Steve, from the $ in your post I see you don't live in the UK - it would help if you could add your location in the profile, so you know which country you are talking about where you can do these things!

[Rod in Japan]

There are a whole plethora of similar restrictions in the US, but I understand that most (but not all) start above a certain size threshold. Is that not true in the UK too?

Farmer Steve, are you familiar with Joel Salatin and his books? I'm a bit of devotee myself.

[Annpan]

There are a whole plethora of similar restrictions in the US, but I understand that most (but not all) start above a certain size threshold. Is that not true in the UK too?

If you hold any livestock you have to have a DEFRA (dept for the environment, farming and rural affairs) number, if it is chickens you don't need to register if your flock is under 25 (?? I think, or is it 50??) but they suggest you should still let them know - in case of any environmental health issues (ie bird flue)
If you are growing any food to sell you need to register and undergo certain checks on your land and your handling procedure.
Everyone who works handling food needs to have a health and hygiene certificate of some sort.
As you might imagine, trying to sell anything as organic (as most of us here would) you would have to get even more soil checks and procedure checks.

It is the crazy bureaucracy of it all... infuriating.

I think that you are allowed to barter goods without these restrictions, or perhaps sell goods at 'cost' price. But if you try to make money you are most certainly want to be doing it under the radar.


I have done a bit of reading up on this, it is difficult to get any official guidance, especially in Scotland where we have a whole different level of bureaucracy in addition to/ instead of the UK rules *sigh*

[ina]

If you hold any livestock you have to have a DEFRA (dept for the environment, farming and rural affairs) number, if it is
chickens you don't need to register if your flock is under 25 (?? I think, or is it 50??)

50, last time I heard (that's Scotland - the rest of the UK might be different!).

[Ratty]

And rather frustratingly the DEFRA legislation states that you cannot sell eggs from hens who are fed "kitchen scraps". I would rather my hens have a varied diet which includes cabbage leaves & the odd bit of wholemeal toast than those on a bland layers mash/pellets diet supplemented only by corn. If I do have an over-run of eggs I'll have to just give them away.

[Annpan]

worse than that ratty, I believe that you are not allowed to feed any chickens, any scraps from a kitchen.
From what I understand this is only the kitchen scraps that have come from your kitchen. (including vegan kitchens)

When we get chickens I will peel, top and tail veg outdoors and feed it to them directly and perhaps do beans or grain in my haybox cooker outside too

[farmersteve]

Wow... I had no idea that local farmers are so restricted in the UK. Yes, I am in the USA. We have some restrictions, but i figure as long as everthing is up front and my chickens are healthy and roam freely on pasture I'm ok. I alway trade eggs for cash, so there is no paper trail. People here in the US believe that farm eggs are much healthier and better for you then the USDA eggs we get in supermarkets (Walmart); where the chickens are fed hormones to make them lay more. Also, baby chicks are ready to be slaughtered when they are just 8 weeks old because of all the hormones and additives that are fed to them.
I personally think the Uk gov. needs to lay off of the local farmers and let them raise and market healthy products.

[ina]

I personally think the Uk gov. needs to lay off of the local farmers and let them raise and market healthy products.

That's just what they want to achieve with all these restrictions! It's not too bad, actually; if you are a farmer anyway, you'd be registered in any case, so there'd not be much extra paperwork etc involved. It's only difficult if you are just, say, a keen gardener with a few hens and want to make a few bob extra...

[farmerdrea]

Every time I think about what a nuisance our restrictions are here, I think about what a complete bu**er they are in the UK!

I sell eggs, milk and colostrum (for pet/livestock comsumption), point-of-lay pullets and breeding chooks, goats, pigs, turkeys, ducks, as well as excess vege from the garden at the local farmers market (there usually isn't much of that, but when it does get ahead of me, I just whack it off and take it to the community stall and they sell it for me with a small commission). Every little bit helps, and it all goes straight back into the farm (which is a registered business, so we have to do the relevant IRD paperwork). This time of year I make a goodly chunk (about $1500 over a couple of months) on selling pullets, as I can get about $20 each for my point-of-lay girls which were autumn-hatched, and I usually have them available before the commercial rearers do.

Cheers
Andrea
NZ

[clare]

Hi All,I read in a magazine that you can sell at your gate any excess fruit and veg from your land and pay no tax/or have to declare it.I mean I'm not talking market stall here but within reason a few bags of apples and runners here and there jam etc,but I don't know about eggs I have my hens now and they are not laying alot(ex-bats) but still 20-25 eggs a week but loads of people sell eggs at their gates here so my sign is up as I have 4 boxes to flogg all dated when they were laid and it will be cash only!!

[ina]

Hi All,I read in a magazine that you can sell at your gate any excess fruit and veg from your land and pay no tax/or have to declare it.I mean I'm not talking market stall here but within reason a few bags of apples and runners here and there jam etc,

Are you sure about the jam? I'd expect the health department to be round in a flash if they get wind of that and inspect your kitchen, and your food hygiene certificate...

[possum]

We sell eggs at $4.50 a dozen, it almost covers costs but the benefit is that we get to each fresh eggs ourselves. We have just upped the number of chickens from about 10 to 30 so hopefully will sell more - my new job has loads of people interested in buying them.
I have also just had my first check from running an Indian cookery course - 10 weeks for 3 people. Not a huge amount of money but it was only a dry run before running it more professionally.
I am also planning on selling plants this year along with any surplus vegetables - the local newsletter will advertise it for free for me (I do their website)

[Bluemoon]

From what I understand the rules for jam are a bit complex. They did want to ban it without the relevant food hygiene certificates, but the WI complained! As a result the rules were changed (ie, made even more confusing).