Whether you work full-time on your small farm or you consider it a hobby, it’s a good idea to purchase farm insurance to protect your land and your work. The coverage you will need for your small farm depends on your operations and on many other things.
If you raise a lot of livestock, there’s an insurance plan to cover cattle and poultry. If you own expensive equipment, you may want to purchase tractor insurance as a precaution. Farm insurance coverage can, and should be customized to meet the needs of each farmer.
Besides farm insurance, the livelihood of your farm might be dependent on making enough money to sustain financially. If you are wondering how to make money on a small farm, there are numerous business ideas to turn your venture into a profitable one. You can try out these eleven creative tips for how to make money on a small farm.
1. Sell your farm produce at different markets
One of the easiest ways to make some extra money is to sell the produce of your small farm at different farmers’ markets in your area. More and more people want to know where the food they eat is coming from, and they are ready to pay good money for quality produce.
If you choose to sell your produce, you need farm insurance that will protect you from the risks that can come with selling your fruits and vegetables to the public.
2. Sell fruit or vegetable seeds
Selling fruit or vegetable seeds, whether in person or over the internet, should come with less risks than selling fresh produce. Many gardeners would be happy to purchase seeds from you, especially if you are growing some types of fruits or veggies that are hard to find.
3. Sell feathers
If you run a poultry farm, poultry farm insurance will help you keep your peace of mind. But your feathered friends will lose some feathers, and those beautiful feathers could earn you some extra cash.
People who make crafts and accessories are often looking for feathers, so be sure to collect and sell them.
4. Grow some flowers
If you are growing different types of crops, you could make some extra cash by growing flowers on your land. You could sell potted flowers to the public, or cut them to sell them to local florists.
5. Grow some mushrooms
If flowers are not your thing, you could use a portion of your land to grow some mushrooms. They are not that difficult to grow and to harvest once you know how, and you could sell them for a good price to local gourmets or local restaurants.
Many people and businesses could also be interested in mushrooms for medicinal purposes, so it’s worth doing some research to figure out how you could make some money from mushrooms.
6. Start a worm farm
Starting a worm farm is easy, and it can bring you many benefits. The soil you raise your worms in will be rich in nutrients, and can be sold to gardeners looking for compost. Plus, fishermen will want to purchase your worms to use them as live bait.
7. Start a dog kennel
Do you like dogs? If you do, you could start a dog kennel and become a dog breeder. If you have a lot of space for them to run around and play, they will be happy and healthy dogs, and people will be excited to visit your farm and choose their new pet.
Of course, starting a dog kennel is a very serious venture, so you need to know exactly what you’re doing before you get started.
8. Raise a different type of animal
If you are raising one type of animal on your farm, you could add another type of animal to increase your income. If your livestock includes cows and horses, for example, it shouldn’t be too complicated to add a few goats to the mix.
Of course, if you acquire a new type of animal, you might need to change your livestock farm insurance coverage.
9. Start a bed and breakfast
If you have a few spare rooms, or even a small empty barn, you could open a bed and breakfast to earn some extra income. Tourists will enjoy spending some time at your farm, looking at your animals and breathing some fresh air.
10. Open your farm to the public
Even if you don’t have what it takes to start a bed and breakfast, you could still welcome some tourists by opening your farm to the public. Families will be willing to pay to spend a day at your farm, feeding or petting your animals, or picking fresh fruits.
Once again, if you want to open your farm to the public, you will need to review your farm insurance coverage.
11. Rent your land as a wedding venue
If you spend every single day working on your farm, it might seem strange to think that there are people who would love to rent your land as a wedding venue. And yet, you could surely make some money by offering some romantic landscapes to happy couples.
