In what areas does your farm business excel? What are you poor at? And how can you respond to make improvements? Self-assessment and continuous improvement are what separates high-performance farms from the average. Rob Hannam, President and Client Director of Synthesis Agri-Food Network, joins us for episode 14 of the Mind Your Farm Business podcast... Read More
Category: Succession Planning
There's a balance that must be struck in any farm succession plan. Mom and dad (the retiring generation) need enough money to retire and enjoy what they've earned, while the succeeding generation needs to start with enough to maintain a viable business. As Jacquie Gerrard of Backswath Management explains, farm succession conversations should start with... Read More
In the day-to-day operation of a farm it can be a challenge to set aside time to chat about what the next generation expects in taking over the business. “Hey Mom/Dad/Uncle… I want you to know this is important…” sort of discussions are important because they help establish expectations, which are needed to begin a... Read More
Farming is not just about producing crops or raising livestock. Much of what separates high performance farms from average to below-average farms is their ability to excel at everything from human resources management and looking after their team to understanding financial ratios and how to deal with the banker, says Rob Hannam, lead facilitator for... Read More
There are sound reasons to incorporate the farm — significant financial reasons, operation benefits and very real long-term business planning implications. But if incorporating is so beneficial, why aren't most farms carrying the Inc. behind the business name? In this episode of Mind Your Farm Business, Shaun Haney asks veteran farm management advisor Merle Good... Read More
According to Statistics Canada, over half a million acres of productive (class 1-3) farmland was "settled" between 2000 and 2011. This "settled area" on dependable agricultural land grew by 19 percent in Canada, with the largest increase happening in southern Ontario and Quebec. The loss of farmland isn't a new phenomenon (the last time people... Read More
Coffee shop talk is often revered and repeated, but is it completely honest? What if, instead of comparing your farm and farm practices across the fence row, you instead sat down with farmers from one hundred kilometers away and compared notes? What could you learn? That's the concept behind formal peer advisory groups, explains Dr... Read More
How does that old saying go? Crop prices take the stairs up but the elevator down. It could be said that crop input prices do the exact opposite. Price trends of both variable and fixed inputs seem to march to their own drum. Variable input prices are slow to back off highs; fixed costs can... Read More
Mind Your Farm Business (MYFB) is a 12-part audio series exploring a wide-range of farm business management topics. Featuring thought-provoking leading experts in an engaging format, MYFB is brought to you by RBC Royal Bank. You can find the full series by tapping here. How many times have you let your gut make a big... Read More
Mind Your Farm Business (MYFB) is a 12-part audio series exploring a wide-range of farm business management topics. Featuring thought-provoking leading experts in an engaging format, MYFB is brought to you by RBC Royal Bank. What's the plan for your farm? If that question seems far too large and long-term to answer effectively, you're exactly... Read More