Decision making on the farm, initiative for the next generation, and RealAgriStudies — a LIVE! with Justin Funk

For our midweek edition of RealAg LIVE! we’re talking farm business and some of the statistics and research that has been conducted. Joining host Shaun Haney is Justin Funk of AgriStudies.

SUMMARY

• Agri Studies is a family business — Funk’s father started it
• Marketing business that helps understand behaviours of farming
• A young farmer — how do you define it? It’s not so much age — it’s where they are in their farming career.
• Who’s making the decisions? It depends on what decision is being made. The lower the risk of the decision, the younger the person is that is making the decision.
• As they earn more, they make more decisions
• Seed decisions are often the ones passed on to the younger generation early…why? The idea is it’s one of the easier decisions, as there is a lot of hand holding from the retailer. Reduced risk.
• Consolidation at the farm level is happening more and more. It’s not new, it’s just now it seems like a bigger deal.
• Fewer people are indicating they are in “expansion mode.” Now a farm goes from a 20,000 acre farm to a 200,000 acre farm, versus the smaller acres we used to farm.
• The less someone gets involved in the day-to-day operations, they get less involved in the day-to-day decisions
• Do different generations view their suppliers in different ways? Yes, there are definitely differences
• RealAgriStudies — the idea was to take a snapshot of how today’s farmer thinks and feels when it comes to decision making, by looking at that from different demographics, we can start to understand what is really important to the farmer. More questions? Reach out to us!
• Attitude towards the farmer in the industry — there’s a group that looks at it like a way of life, a group that looks at it like a business, and a group that looks at it as a hybrid of both. 66 per cent of farmers fit into that hybrid.
• There are fewer farmers today that say they look at farming as just a business.
• When looking at the under 35 farmer, you need to look at their frame of reference before you start criticizing
• You don’t appreciate service until you get bad service. Keep that in mind.
• Differences in Quebec versus the rest of Canada when it comes to farmer attitudes? Still researching. Definitely a difference in production.
• How do you encourage the younger farmer to start taking charge? It really plays into family dynamics.
• The next generation needs to have the right tools, but also the initiative
• Leave the farm!! It’s something that is completely underrated…and very useful.

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