Optimal Organizations for Southeastern South Dakota Livestock Farms: Land Acquisition and Minimum Resource Models

Today’s farm, operators have an ever increasing number and variety of resourced under their control. With this increase in resource use, farm operators need guidelines to use in planning resource use and the possible expansion of their farm enterprises. Farm operators can use the resources under their control in various ways, but for each set of price relationships a certain resource combination provides maximum net income. Knowledge of alternative enterprise organizations for various farm situations, at different price levels, is useful in providing guidelines to farmers for organizing their farms. Livestock farmers of Southeastern South Dakota who wish to increase their income have to choose among the alternatives of reorganizing their farms, supplementing their farm income from part-time non-farm employment which comes closer to providing the income they desire. For the farm family that wished to remain in agriculture it is important that they know the kinds and amounts of resources required to earn specified incomes. Often times the specified income is the minimum income that is needed to keep the farmer in agriculture. (see more in text