The federal government is extending the comment period for its proposal to potentially eliminate the deferred cash ticket option for grain sales. The department of finance, on Tuesday, announced the consultation period that was originally scheduled to end May 24th will remain open beyond seeding season, until July 24. When delivering a listed grain (such... Read More
Category: Finance
If when you think of risk in farming you think only of uncontrollable things, like the weather and global trade, or only crop price slides, you've likely missed an opportunity to take a more proactive approach to risk management. While it's easy to get overwhelmed by 'what if' scenarios and all the different forms of... Read More
The federal government is proposing the elimination of deferred cash purchase tickets for grain sales — a tool used by farmers to manage cash flow for tax purposes from one year to the next. When delivering a listed grain (such as wheat, oats, barley, rye, flaxseed, or canola), producers have long had the option of... Read More
Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay announced changes to Farm Credit Canada's Young Farmer Loan program in Ottawa on Wednesday. FCC will double the amount of credit available to individual farmers under the age of 40 — raising the maximum to $1 million from $500,000, said the minister. The ag lender will also lower the minimum down-payment... Read More
Borrowing at 0% interest is about as good as it gets. When only 20% of producers are using available cash advance programs, like the one administered by the Canadian Canola Growers, you have to question why more farmers are not taking advantage of effective borrowing programs. According to David Derwin, of PI Financial, only 5... Read More
For farmers, buying land can be the biggest business decision you make. It’s also a tremendously emotional decision that many famers make without fully considering all the ramifications, explains Alberta Agriculture farm financial specialist Rick Dehod. “Is it a need or a want?” asks Dehod, who says many times buying land is what farmers want,... Read More
What's your farm's liquidity? If you know, do you think it's enough? Could you be missing out on opportunities because of a lack of liquidity? Access to working capital, or liquidity, is just one measure of a farm's business that can be an indicator of how competitive a farm can be, says Terry Betker, president... Read More
The finding is staggering. A recent IPSOS Reid poll found that certain farms achieve five-times higher return on assets because of one key element. Perhaps more surprising is how accessible this element of a farm business is — it's a written business plan. That number is impressive, but even more striking is the associated finding... Read More
It wasn't that many years ago that corn and soybean growers were riding the wave of $7 corn, high land rent, and applying all the groceries to every acre. In 2016, that wave of optimism has disappeared as suggested in the DTN / Progressive Farmer Ag Producer Confidence Index (ACI) results. The recent survey produced... Read More
For 32 years, Rob Hall worked in agricultural banking in Ontario – sometimes at the very top of the food chain, and always on the management side of the desk. Now, he’s switched sides. He’s on the farmer’s side. And he’s eager to talk in plain language. In February, Hall launched BankSpeak, a business finance... Read More