Raspberry and Blackberry Interactive High Tunnel Budgets

Jennie Popp

Germán Rodríguez

Brittany Haywood

Heather Friedrich

Curt Rom

Horticulture Industry Show January 8‐9, 2010

Fayetteville, Arkansas

                                

     

INTRODUCTION

Production of blackberries and raspberries in Arkansas is growing as more consumers demand a local supply of fresh, high quality fruit.

                                    

   

INTRODUCTION

Demand for these fresh berries still typically exceeds supply in much of the state particularly early and late in the production season.

                              

           

INTRODUCTION

Commercial production with high tunnels offers promise for those producers willing to make the necessary capital investment for early and/or late season production.

   

                               

           

HIGH TUNNEL PRODUCTION

High tunnel production help to: – Minimize threat of freeze damage – Advance and expand harvest season – Reduce pests and pesticide use – Improve fruit quality – Spread workload and cash flow more evenly

                                             

       

OBJECTIVE

To develop raspberry and blackberry interactive budgets that allow comparisons among net returns, revenues and total costs to assist berry producers to make better planning and financial decisions.

               

 

 

   

BACKGROUND Numerous states have developed berry budgets; for example:

California http://www.goletavalleychamber.com/articles/uploaded/GoletaWhitePaperAppendixJuly2006.pdf

Kentucky http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/id/id149/ID149.PDF

New York http://www.fruit.cornell.edu/Berries/bramblepdf/high_tunnel_production_guide.pdf

North Carolina http://ncsu.edu/enterprises/blackberries‐raspberries/management/blackberry‐raspberry‐budgets‐pricing/

Ohio http://aede.osu.edu/Programs/FarmManagement/Budgets/berry/prepick.htm

Canada: British Columbia http://www.agf.gov.bc.ca/busmgmt/budgets/budget_pdf/berry/raspov96.pdf

BACKGROUND

 BACKGROUND (cont.)

                            

 

DESIGN

These budgets were developed to allow producers to compare among different cultivar varieties and high tunnel dimensions.

                                                

       

DESIGN The producer needs to select the planting distance, annual yield, market price, labor costs, interest rate, inflation rate and high tunnel dimension; then the budget will be created automatically.

   BUDGET – SET UP

SUMMARY

ECONOMICS

ECONOMICS

ECONOMICS

BUDGET

BUDGET

 DETAILED BUDGET

 

                                

 

                                  

     

                                     

BUDGET USEFULNESS

Producers can use these interactive budgets to estimate operating costs, fixed costs, total costs and expected total returns

By modifying an important production practice, cost or return value producers can answer what if questions before the producer undertakes the practice

Allowing comparisons among different cultivar varieties and high tunnel dimensions would assist berry producers to make better planning and financial decisions

               

                                   

           

               

LIMITATIONS

A certain level of general computer knowledge is required

Producers must have access to a computer with Microsoft Excel installed and working properly to take advantage of these budgets

Budgets work best with MS 2007 software

Activities are not broken down on a month‐to‐month basis