Is ranching profitable now?

Stijn Schmitz welcomes Joel Salatin to the show. Joel Salatin is self described Christian Libertarian Environmentalist Capitalist Lunatic Farmer. The episode explores current trends and challenges in agricultural commodities, with a particular focus on beef, poultry, and farming practices. Salatin discusses the significant challenges facing the beef industry, including a severe drought in the southern United States, an aging farming population, and high entry costs for young farmers. The US beef cattle herd is currently at its lowest point since 1950, despite population doubling. This, combined with dietary trends like paleo and keto diets, has created unprecedented market pressure on beef prices.

The conversation delves into the problematic nature of industrial farming practices. Salatin critiques the current agricultural system, highlighting how it has pushed biological systems beyond their natural capacity. He emphasizes the importance of creating habitats that allow animals to express their natural characteristics, contrasting this with large-scale industrial farming approaches. A key trend Salatin sees emerging is the “homestead tsunami” – a growing movement of small-scale farming and backyard food production. In 2020 alone, two million backyard chicken flocks started in the US. He believes this smallholder revolution could gradually challenge the industrial agricultural complex, aided by improved distribution logistics and direct-to-consumer online marketing.

Regarding his own farm, Polyphase Farm, Salatin explains their approach of diversification and ecological farming. They focus on perennial systems, extensive composting, and creating a farm with multiple economic enterprises. The farm now supports 22 full-time employees and includes a stewardship program to launch young farmers. Salatin predicts future challenges including water scarcity, increasing veterinary problems in livestock industries, and continued pressure from industrial farming models that exceed their efficiency. However, he remains optimistic about the potential for small-scale, ecologically sound farming practices to create meaningful change in agricultural production.

Timestamps:
00:00:00 – Introduction
00:01:10 – Beef Price Surge Drivers
00:07:52 – Understanding Cattle Cycles
00:13:54 – Incentivizing Young Farmers
00:16:24 – Intensive Grazing Advantages
00:24:17 – Soybean Bailouts Critique
00:28:59 – Market Consolidation Fragility
00:34:18 – Genetics Impact on Fertility
00:41:27 – Fertilizer Supply Dynamics
00:54:51 – Wheat Market Fluctuations
00:56:44 – Poultry Price Pressures
01:09:06 – Future Agriculture Trends
01:16:31 – Polyface Farm Overview
01:19:50 – Concluding Thoughts

Guest Links:
Website: https://www.thelunaticfarmer.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/polyfacefarm
X: https://x.com/JoelSalatin

Joel Salatin, 68, dubs himself a Christian libertarian environmentalist capitalist lunatic farmer. Admirers hail him as the world’s most famous farmer, the high priest of the pasture, and Virginia’s most eclectic thinker since Thomas Jefferson. Detractors label him a bio-terrorist, Typhoid Mary, charlatan, and starvation advocate.

Armed with high school and college debate trophies, 16 published books, and a thriving multi-generational family farm, Salatin draws on decades of food, farming, and fantasy to captivate global audiences. Equally at home herding cows or keynoting for Wall Street CEOs, he covers profitable regenerative farming techniques alongside cultural debates like orthodoxy versus heresy.A master wordsmith, he shifts crowds from laughter to tears, frustration to hope, earning frequent standing ovations. He calls his talks “performances,” thriving on Q&A interaction: “I love the interaction,” he says.

Salatin co-owns Polyface Farm in Swoope, Virginia—showcased in Michael Pollan’s New York Times bestseller Omnivore’s Dilemma and the award-winning documentary Food, Inc. The operation serves over 5,000 families, 10 restaurants, and five retail outlets with innovative products like salad bar beef, pigaerator pork, pastured poultry, and forestry goods. It ships nationwide, blending local roots with scalable business reach.

When not speaking, Salatin farms hands-on, mentoring youth, inspiring visitors, and championing regenerative food systems. He’s editor of The Stockman Grass Farmer, the grass farming movement’s foundational voice, and pens columns like “Confessions of a Steward” for Plain Values magazine, “Homestead Abundance” for Homestead Living, pieces for Homesteaders of America, and monthly contributions to Manward e-magazine. His blog, Musings from the Lunatic Farmer, and co-hosted podcast BEYOND LABELS with Dr. Sina McCullough, extend his influence.

A staple on radio and podcasts for preppers, homesteaders, ecological farmers, and foodies, Salatin blends practical, can-do entrepreneurial solutions with passionate sustainability advocacy.