This is the way.

We've been surprised by home quickly our cost of living dropped after starting homesteading full time. The overall quality of what we eat has improved significantly and the cost reduced. We have our first steer going in the freezer in 2 weeks and I grow almost all of our vegetables. Community has been outmost valuable resource and we trade for anything we don't have. Thanks for sharing your experience.

thanks for breaking it down. we are on enough property to homestead, but we don't have time. fortunately, many around us do. we buy their eggs, milk, cheese, meat, etc.

Feed costs for the cow actually feels a little high to me, but I know jerseys need that energy being prolific milkers.

awesome. Great to get insight into how it works out. Appreciate you sharing your experience 🫂

What is your property size for all this, roughly? Acre/head? So let's say, 5-10 acres total for yourself?

that’s awesome.

To calculate the ROI considering the value of the food you consume, we need to assign a monetary value to the food produced and consumed by your family. This will help us understand the true financial impact of your homesteading efforts. ### Step 1: Estimate the Value of Consumed Food 1. **Milk:** - You produce 4 gallons of milk per day, selling half and consuming half. - Daily consumption: 2 gallons - Annual consumption: \(2 \text{ gallons/day} \times 365 \text{ days} = 730 \text{ gallons}\) - Value of consumed milk: \(730 \text{ gallons} \times 7 \text{ dollars/gallon} = 5,110 \text{ dollars}\) 2. **Eggs:** - You produce roughly 3,000 eggs annually. - Assuming a market price of $0.25 per egg: - Value of consumed eggs: \(3,000 \text{ eggs} \times 0.25 \text{ dollars/egg} = 750 \text{ dollars}\) 3. **Beef:** - You get about 240 lbs of grass-fed beef from the calf. - Assuming a market price of $5 per pound: - Value of consumed beef: \(240 \text{ lbs} \times 5 \text{ dollars/lb} = 1,200 \text{ dollars}\) 4. **Rabbit Meat:** - You produce roughly 70 kits, with each kit yielding about 2 lbs of meat. - Total rabbit meat: \(70 \text{ kits} \times 2 \text{ lbs/kit} = 140 \text{ lbs}\) - Assuming a market price of $5 per pound: - Value of consumed rabbit meat: \(140 \text{ lbs} \times 5 \text{ dollars/lb} = 700 \text{ dollars}\) 5. **Total Value of Consumed Food:** - Total value = Value of milk + Value of eggs + Value of beef + Value of rabbit meat - Total value = \(5,110 + 750 + 1,200 + 700 = 7,760 \text{ dollars}\) ### Step 2: Calculate Net Income Including Consumed Food Value 1. **Total Income:** - Income from selling milk: $5,100 - Value of consumed food: $7,760 - **Total Income:** \(5,100 + 7,760 = 12,860 \text{ dollars}\) 2. **Total Costs:** - Total out-of-pocket costs: $2,100 (as stated) - Annual operating costs: $5,250 - **Total Costs:** \(2,100 + 5,250 = 7,350 \text{ dollars}\) 3. **Net Income:** - Total Income - Total Costs - \(12,860 - 7,350 = 5,510 \text{ dollars}\) ### Step 3: Calculate ROI \[ \text{ROI} = \frac{5,510}{7,250} \times 100 \approx 75.86\% \] ### Conclusion Considering the value of the food you consume, the ROI for your homesteading investment in the first year is approximately **75.86%**. This indicates a positive return on your investment when accounting for the savings from the food produced and consumed at home.

Cool post. Makes me want to go deeper into learning about homesteading. Can you share land usage (square feet or average per animal) and climate you’re in?

Labor.

This is wonderful 💜

this is great to hear (also, how was I not following you?!)

Community resilience for the win!

we all pull together out here in the texas countryside.

Proud of you guys, inspiring! #proofofwork

whoops! the cost of chicken feed is way too high, we're actually spending about $800 in chicken feed!

Thanks for sharing this😊

I was about to say bud, that's $16 a dozen for those eggs.

Stop thinking in fiat.

you're right. bottom line, out of pocket expenses to us, 0 BTC

This is an awesome post. How many cows do you have? What climate do you have? Any winter?

We only have one milk cow and one beef calf right now. Middle Tennessee, some mild winters (5 degrees Fahrenheit this morning)

living the dream 🙌

This is incredible! Provide a final tally, too, including expected savings from deferred groceries costs.

This is a cool summary! Was shocked by how much time milking cows takes

This is great. Thanks for sharing