A grazing fee is a charge, usually on a monthly basis, for
grazing
In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to roam around and consume wild vegetations in order to convert the otherwise indigestible (by human gut) cellulose within grass and other ...
a specific kind of
livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...
.
Australia
In
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, maximum grazing fees have been set by regulation at $1.00 per head of large stock or per 10 (or less) head of small stock per day; lower fees may be set by individual authorities.
Agistment
Agistment originally referred specifically to the proceeds of pasturage in the king's forests. To agist is, in English law, to take cattle to graze, in exchange for payment (derived from the Old English ''giste'', ''gite'', a "lying place").
H ...
on private land in Queensland, Australia, has sometimes been at rates of $5 per head per week when demand is high.
United States
In the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, grazing fees are generally charged per AUM (
animal unit The concept of an animal unit (AU) has traditionally been used in North America to facilitate planning, analysis and administration of forage use by grazing livestock, but the term has also had other applications (in relation to odor control regulat ...
month). (Some additional fee or fees may be charged in various jurisdictions, e.g. per application.) On US federal grazing land, the grazing fee for 2012 (as for 2011) is $1.35 per AUM.
As of 2015, the grazing fee has been increased to $1.69.
Over several decades, the fees charged on US federal rangelands have generally been substantially lower than rates charged on private lands in the US. In 2006, the grazing fee on Oregon state lands was $5.60 per AUM.
Canada
In 2015, grazing fees on Crown land in the province of British Columbia are $3.20 per AUM. In comparison, 2012 grazing rates in Alberta were $1.39-$2.79/AUM.
Calculation formulas
Various formulas are used for calculating grazing fees on public lands. Some examples are:
*For federal rangelands of the United States,
::the grazing fee "equals the $1.23 base established by the 1966 Western Livestock Grazing Survey multiplied by the result of the Forage Value Index (a derived index of the relative change in the previous year's average monthly rate per head for pasturing
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...
, computed annually from data supplied by the Statistical Reporting Service) added to the Combined Index (Beef Cattle Price Index minus the Prices Paid Index) and divided by 100; provided, that the annual increase or decrease in such fee for any given year shall be limited to not more than plus or minus 25 percent of the previous year's fee, and provided further, that the fee shall not be less than $1.35 per animal unit month."
[United States Executive Order No. 12548, Feb. 14, 1986, 51 F.R. 5985, Grazing Fees.] Apart from the $1.35 floor, which took effect on February 14, 1986,
[ this is the same as the fee calculation that applied for the grazing years 1979 through 1985.
*For lands of the state of Oregon,
::the grazing fee is the greatest of a) $250; (b) $4.25 per AUM; or (c) The carrying capacity of the leasehold in AUMs multiplied by the annual AUM rate (expressed in dollars per AUM). The annual AUM compensation rate equals G x CC x S x P, where G is animal gain per month (set at 35 pounds, since January 1, 2010), CC is marketable calf crop (fixed at 80 percent), S is state share of calf gain (set at 25 percent on January 1, 2012), and P is calf price (90 % of the USDA national price data indicating average sale price for the preceding one year period based on an October through September year).][Oregon Administrative Rules 141-110-0080
https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/displayChapterRules.action?selectedChapter=100]
*For a grazing license or permit on Crown land in the province of British Columbia,
::the grazing fee per authorized AUM is "93% of the average gross sales revenue per kilogram for live beef cattle marketed during the immediately preceding 3 years through the B.C. Livestock Producers Cooperative Association.".[British Columbia Reg. 115/2005, Range Regulation.]
References
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grazing Fee
Agriculture in the United States
Agriculture in Canada
Livestock in Australia