MSU Extension Farm Management

The Livestock Budget Estimator tool for Beef producers is designed to assist with budget planning for your beef operation.  It is a Microsoft Excel based tool built around key areas that producers need to consider as they plan for and continually evaluate their production season. It combines in one place:

• Marketing Goals
• Sale Weight Goals
• Break-Evens of:
  • Net Farm Income
  • Cash Flow

Also available within the tool are comparisons to other beef farms based on financial data obtained from the FINBIN database.  FINBIN is one of the largest and most accessible sources of farm financial and production benchmark information.  These farm financials provide an opportunity to determine similarities, areas of strength, and potential areas of improvement for your farm business. 

For those looking for an expanded analysis, producers can also use tools designed for more specific livestock budget planning:

• Cow-calf enterprise budget tool - Beef (msu.edu) - This excel tool helps cow-calf producers forecast their economic profitability. The tool will help users better understand their revenue, variable and fixed costs, and ultimately profitability.

• Feedlot enterprise budget tool - Beef (msu.edu) - This excel sheet will help users navigate their enterprise budget tool by weighing in your weights, performance and prices for your Beef and Holstein steers.