When should you start succession planning? The earlier the better, says farm succession expert Len Davies. In the second episode of the Agricultural Management Institute’s (AMI) new farm succession video series, Davies takes us to the Veenstra family farm near Port Colborne, Ontario. Here we meet Andy Veenstra who shares succession tips and strategies he used… Read More
Category: Farm Management
What are the key steps that farm families need to consider when developing a farm succession plan? It’s a looming question for many farm families right now. To help in the process, the Agricultural Management Institute (AMI) has produced a new farm succession video series, viewed from the kitchen tables of Ontario farm families as… Read More
Young and beginning farmers have a lot hanging over them. Getting a business up and running, raising families, keeping up with all the latest in agriculture. It’s at that point that focus becomes critical. You can hit a point where you’re doing a million things and doing none of them well because you don’t know… Read More
Farm land values and land rents are a hot topic this winter. JP Gervais of FCC recently gave his thoughts on what’s driving Ontario land values, and University of Guelph’s Alfons Weersink offered insight into making land rent agreements work. As land prices rise, so to do rents, but a constant increase isn’t sustainable. What’s… Read More
When plans exist only in our heads and aren’t ever gone through with hard numbers, perceptions can start to over take reality. Crop marketing is no different. Before you get knee deep in the exciting world of futures and options, there’s a preliminary marketing plan to draw up first. In this Ask FarmLink episode, Chris… Read More
Land prices are at all time highs, and it’s uncertain as to when — if ever — those prices will level off or drop. That’s great if you own land or are about to retire, but it’s not so great for those looking to expand or for those dependent on renting a good portion of… Read More
RealAgriculture.com’s Bern Tobin sat down yesterday with FCC’s chief agricultural economist Jean-Philippe Gervais to dig deep into what’s behind the recent run up in Ontario land values and where prices are headed. In this video fresh from yesterday’s full conference day at the Southwest Agricultural Conference being held at Ridgetown, Ont., Gervais answers some heady… Read More
Agriculture has been on a roll for the last few years. Commodity and land values are up and interest rates are down — these are good times for farmers. How do you make the most of it? According to Dr. Danny Klinefelter, professor and extension economist with Texas A&M University, the time to prepare for a… Read More
2013 will be upon us before you know it and with that comes a great way to kick off the new year. FarmTech 2013 is one of Western Canada’s premiere agricultural events and a great place for producers to learn more about the industry. The three day event features 5 keynote speakers and over 30… Read More
Those who haven’t thought about or planned their business succession will have someone who has planned theirs take over their farm or business. It’s that simple. That’s according to Daryl Ritchie, chairman and CEO of MNP LLC, in this episode of the RealLeaders series. What’s more, Ritchie says that too often businesses and farms focus… Read More
Tuesday nights are pretty important on Twitter if you’re involved in agriculture. Tuesday nights are #AgChat nights — a few hours of moderated conversation on a particular topic of interest for farmers, industry and anyone else interested in agriculture. Last night’s topic was farm business management. Farmers and aspiring farmers alike weighed in on questions… Read More
Keeping the crop in the bin during market dips but still having the bills paid is one advantage of using a cash advance program. For canola and several other crops, the cash advance is administered by the Canadian Canola Growers Association. Farmers can access $100,000 interest free, and up to another $300,000 borrowed at CIBC’s… Read More
An idea is only good if it works. I know that statement may fall under the category of “Duh”, but when it comes to putting theory into practice on your farm, it has to be tailor made for YOUR farm and how you run it. Someone can say, “you need to cut costs”, but only… Read More
Farm Credit Canada recently released its latest farmland values (for January to June, 2012). The national average increase of 8.6% semi-annually is staggering, especially considering that it follows on the heels of a 6.9% increase from the six months previous. I have to ask — if this trend of increasing farmland prices continues, what will… Read More
The face of Canada is constantly changing, however, a great deal of those changes happen so slowly they go unnoticed. But sometimes changes take place that can’t help but be felt. Any of those shifts that involve the famous or infamous “baby boomer” generation tend to be some of the more noticeable demographic shifts. That’s… Read More