Can you really make a living on a small farm? MaryRose Livingston of Northland Sheep Dairy discusses how she and her husband Donn sell the cheese, meat and wool from their flock, the profitability of their farm, and how it has enabled a high quality of life for them. This 5 minute video provided through Cornell Small Farms Program gives a good look at the economics of a very small sheep dairy.
- Principles of sheep dairying in North America. Chapter 12 is on the economics of raising dairy sheep.
- Start-Up and Operating Costs of Small Farmstead Cheese Operations for Dairy Sheep 2 (PDF) by Carol Delaney and Dennis Kauppila – Farmers with sheep dairies may want to look at the option of making cheese on their farm instead of selling whole milk to a cheese processor. This type of enterprise will require added labor for marketing and cheesemaking and extra costs to build the cheese facility. (Please be aware that the costs presented in this paper are from 2002, so must be adjusted for inflation.)
- Economics of Winter Milking for Medium to Large Dairy Sheep Operations 2 (PDF) by Yves M. Berger, University of Wisconsin – As in any enterprise, milking sheep and selling the milk (or processed products) is all about making a profit. Of course, the financial return will be variable according to the producer’s reasons for starting a dairy sheep business (practical and/or philosophical)… (Please be aware that the costs presented in this paper are from 2002, so must be adjusted for inflation.)