This is an opinion editorial by AlbertaHodl, a Canadian dairy and beef farmer and a passionate bitcoin miner.
This is a farmer’s perspective on why it is a good idea to mine bitcoin.
I was born and raised on a farm. I acquired an economics, business and hard-work degree without actually finishing any post-secondary schooling. Times were tough. My dad split the farm with his brother in 1998. As a 10-year-old, I busted my ass along with my 13-year-old brother because we didn’t have a choice. Money was tight. Interest rates had finally reached “normal” levels and commodity prices were not great, but life was good. Since then, we have been able to successfully expand our operation, buy bigger and better equipment, more land and more animals. Here we are today, in the same boat as a lot of other farmers and ranchers: Big enough to earn a living, but wondering what to do now.
Land around us is pushing $15,000 per acre. Regardless of where you farm, the costs are getting out of hand. New and even used equipment is starting to seem out of reach and low interest rates were about the only positive thing if you needed a loan. Well, kiss that goodbye. When you add on political regulations, fertilizer and labor costs, many of us farmers are reconsidering the next item on our ever-growing wish list. It’s pretty tough to sum up a generic return on investment that includes inputs, irrigation costs, seeding costs, etc., but any farmer is well aware of the long-term investment that…
