When I was a kid, I remember getting a delivery one evening (it was dark outside) that was a big box with holes punched in it. It wasn’t the holes that were curious, it was the peeping that came from inside. There were 100 baby chicks chirping away! It was a package from a chicken farm!
My dad, who loves every aspect of the outdoors and the country life, had ordered the little chicks for his three kids to play with. (Since they’re not chicks very long, I’m sure there was another reason.) To keep the babies warm (some looked like they had just hatched), my mom turned the oven on low and put them in it. For many days and weeks after that there were chickens all around our house – and they were fun little pets.
A few years later, we kept the chicken tradition alive by adding a row of 10 egg-laying hens. Every morning we’d go and collect the eggs out of the tray. There is nothing like fresh eggs and to this day I eat an egg every single morning for breakfast.
There’s nothing like farm life, and there’s nothing like enjoying fresh eggs, and yes, fresh chicken.
In November 2017, the Washington Post reported that “for only the second time in the last century, the number of farmers under 35 years old is increasing, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s latest Census of Agriculture. Sixty-nine percent of the surveyed young farmers had college degrees — significantly higher than the general population.”
The article continues, “the number of farmers age 25 to 34 grew 2.2 percent between 2007 and 2012, according to the 2014 USDA census, a period when other groups of farmers — save the oldest — shrunk by double digits. In some states, such as California, Nebraska and South Dakota, the number of beginning farmers has grown by 20 percent or more.”
What does that mean in states like Mississippi? It means that there’s every opportunity and reason for families to move South to pursue their dream of owning and operating a farm.
“We see people from all walks of life and from all parts of the country move to Mississippi to own and work on a farm,” says John Alumbaugh, who sells chicken farms for a living. “There are farms for sale all around our state; you just have to know how to find one.” John is a realtor who specializes in listing and selling farms. In a recent post he states, “owning a chicken farm is a great way to make a living. It’s hard work, but it can provide a lifestyle that is envious in multiple ways. Chicken farmers rise early and work hard. The work is often strenuous, and it’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It’s dirty, and it smells! Most farmers, however, will tell you that smell you experience on chicken farm is the smell of money.” Read the full post here.
So the next time you’re watching HGTV and looking at dream homes, consider looking at dream farms and remember – the smell of chickens could be the smell of money!
Check out John Alumbaugh’s listings at chickenfarmsforsale.com and read more of our stories and reviews at Front Door Content.
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