Jun 19, 2026 · 23 min · 12 segments
A hundred and thirty thousand (yes, $130,000) in farm revenue sounds great until you see what stays. Chef Mikey Russo took home $30,000 from his farm last year. He paid $40,000 in labor. The rest went…
I've interviewed farmer Michael Russo twice in the past few years, once back in 2023 when he was just getting started, and again recently here in 2026 after he had three years of running his business.
Revenue, take-home pay, labor costs, lifestyle expenses, what he saved before he started and what he spends now.
$130,000 in revenue, $30,000 take-home pay, five months of near-zero farm income every year.
Those numbers tell a very different story depending on who you are and where you live.
Today, I'm going to break down the real cost of making a living on a small farm and what those numbers actually look like when you stop rounding up or just giving into the dream.
If you can make that money off 80 50-foot beds across two properties selling mostly salad greens at $13 a pound wholesale to eight restaurant clients, that's a legitimate farm business.
And you're going to say, well, it doesn't sound like he made a lot of money, but there's a lot of nuance here because it's set up that way for a reason.
If you listen to the full interview, you get all the context, but I'll try and bring it full circle.
The rest goes to reinvestment into the farm, compost, tools, a $6,000 YouTube course, coaching, infrastructure, like high tunnels and a cool bot trailer.
He's investing in himself, YouTube equipment, a second farm property, a wood-fired cooking area where he's going to host private dinners.
Every dollar that doesn't go into labors and bills goes back into the business or back into his own education.
This is why you have to be very careful when you hear how much people make on a farm, because Chef Mikey's context is probably very different than your context.
I've interviewed farmer Michael Russo twice in the past few years, once back in 2023 when he was just getting started, and again recently here in 2026 after he had three years of running his business.
Revenue, take-home pay, labor costs, lifestyle expenses, what he saved before he started and what he spends now.
$130,000 in revenue, $30,000 take-home pay, five months of near-zero farm income every year.
Those numbers tell a very different story depending on who you are and where you live.
Today, I'm going to break down the real cost of making a living on a small farm and what those numbers actually look like when you stop rounding up or just giving into the dream.
If you can make that money off 80 50-foot beds across two properties selling mostly salad greens at $13 a pound wholesale to eight restaurant clients, that's a legitimate farm business.
And you're going to say, well, it doesn't sound like he made a lot of money, but there's a lot of nuance here because it's set up that way for a reason.
If you listen to the full interview, you get all the context, but I'll try and bring it full circle.
The rest goes to reinvestment into the farm, compost, tools, a $6,000 YouTube course, coaching, infrastructure, like high tunnels and a cool bot trailer.
He's investing in himself, YouTube equipment, a second farm property, a wood-fired cooking area where he's going to host private dinners.
Every dollar that doesn't go into labors and bills goes back into the business or back into his own education.
This is why you have to be very careful when you hear how much people make on a farm, because Chef Mikey's context is probably very different than your context.
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