Awaiting Answers and Business Plans

We are still waiting on an answer from the landlord.  While he ponders, I research.  We have a friend that is starting a grass raised beef business with Shawn's help (more a hobby for him, as his own logistics company is very successful, and affords him the ability to fund his extensive hobbies, though he is dedicated to making this new venture profitable)  He also happens to have some amazing contacts in the city.  I can read and plan and concoct marketing schemes to create a supplemental income, but helping him start his business may be the key to getting ours further than we thought.

He has far more pasture, and room to grow his own hay and grain feed for animals as large as cattle.  Maybe we should leave the bulk of the cattle raising to him. We have about 20 acres, an under utilized woodlot, and as it occurred to me last night, the landlord grows cash crop in the fields behind the barn.  40 acres of the stuff.  Which would significantly reduce the feed bill for pasture raised hogs, and at the same time, the pigs would break up the soil and grind in the corn stalks after harvest, eat cobs off the ground, and fertilize the fields!  Portable electric fencing would give us the ability to rotate them through the harvested fields in the fall, the woodlot in the summer, and have them farrow in the pasture around the house and barn in piggy huts.  Even my dream of having a dairy animal could be put to multiple uses, as there is no way we, as a family, can consume the amount of milk a Jersey can produce in a day.  Breed her to a beef breed.  Leave her calf on for 1 feeding a day, take milk for the family for milk, butter, and cheese, and the rest is an amazing supplement to pigs!

Shawn is a cattle man, but I think I am bringing him around to the fact the amount of land we have available, as well as the cost of breeding stock, would leave us better suited to patured pork.  Partnered with the freind with connections, we could supply both pasture raised pork AND beef.  Though I am still wanting to add in more chickens and heritage turkeys.  Shawn has decided that he can be a tough man, and process chickens himself for our family, instead of sending them out.....that might take some getting used to!

Now if the landlord would just get off the pot!!  He has been a might moody as of late, so we haven't pestered for an answer....