Michiganders deer feeding ban & livestock food questions

**Kris in MI** · #1 09/29/08, 01:07 PM

Hey all you Michigan folk! With the ban on feeding deer this year, has anyone checked into buying the 'deer' corn, carrots, sugar beets, etc for their livestock instead? I'm thinking the deer feed farmers should now have alot of product they don't have a market for. . . maybe this is a way to save money on feeding my chickens?? I just don't know how to go about finding those farmers.

Any ideas?

mandidawn · #2 09/29/08, 01:16 PM

well, here in Southern Michigan, you can go buy the "bags" of feed at all the normal stores. Havn't looked at the price, but all in all, it would probably be pretty cheap.

**Kris in MI** · #3 09/29/08, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mandidawn

well, here in Southern Michigan, you can go buy the "bags" of feed at all the normal stores. Havn't looked at the price, but all in all, it would probably be pretty cheap.

Really? Cuz none of the normal places for deer feed around me (E of Lansing), seem to have any this year.

nappy · #4 09/29/08, 01:54 PM

Up here at the Holiday station in Charlevoix today there were many stacks of carrots, sugar beets and corn. Maybe the sellers of deer bait are assuming that the bait ban will be revoked. Am looking forward to a "blue light special" on deer bait!! Not sure if the price now is less than livestock feed. Anyone know? The other thing is that some people will still bait since the DNR can't be everywhere to catch them.

Nappy

willow_girl · #5 09/29/08, 02:39 PM

Back when I lived in Michigan, I used to pick up a bag of deer carrots every fall ... I'd pick out the best ones, and eat homemade carrot cake for a month straight! Then I'd feed the leftovers to my horses. Everybody was happy! Those were the days.

ergoman · #6 09/29/08, 02:42 PM

Only a few of the suppliers grow the corn themselves, the prices are set with the corn price + labor + profit. I'm pretty sure they have not bagged any more since the ban and will sell bulk to the feed mills if it isnt lifted. Buying your corn at a mill before any value is added, (or off the farm possibly) will usually be the cheapest. Ive been providing the corn for two local feed stores for a few years and the market has slowed significantly. If I cant sell the corn already bagged, I'll dump it out and sell it to a mill for market rate.

You may get lucky by buying the corn at a discounted rate from someone that sells by the road that wants to sell it before it gets ruined with moisture???