NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Pick any country road in the state of Tennessee and, if you travel long enough, you’ll eventually come across chickens and other livestock.
One thing that all live stock needs is water, with some animals, like chickens, needing more than others.
“They consume roughly one and a half to about 2 gallons a day,” Dale Barnett, Executive Director of the Tennessee Poultry Association, told WTVF.
Of course, not all the water goes directly to the animals as drinking water. Some of the water is used for daily operations on the farm.
“The average farm is looking at anywhere from $4,000 to $6,000 per year.”
That number is per chicken house and farms that raise chickens usually have more than just one.
As you can imagine, providing water can quickly become expensive, which is why a piece of legislation in Nashville that would create an exemption for farmers has recently gained so much support.
“We estimate, for the average farmer, average grower, this represents about a $430 tax savings that this will mean to them per house.”
That’s per chicken house.
“There’s always something to repair. Always something to fix, always something to improve upon. Farmers are very frugal and they already know where that money is needed next and can best serve their operation, their production and their efficiency of operation.”
Barnett said this piece of legislation would really help out the farmers of Tennessee.