Reading Time: 3 minutes Now that summer’s on the doorstep, the kids are home from school, and your planning and preparation for the growing season are over, it’s an ideal time to have some important conversations with your family members around succession planning. As anyone who has gone through the process knows, succession planning within the family can be […] Read more
Prepping the kids for the financial reality of farm ownership
It may be the biggest question of all. When is the right time to give the kids a voice in business planning?
Between spouses
Formalizing the informal partnership
Reading Time: 3 minutes Joint ownership between spouses has been a long-standing fixture in the farming community, with each holding equal influence when it comes to making key business decisions. It is widely acknowledged and recognized that spouses are key influencers in business decisions. They have always stood front and centre in financial negotiations, are equal participants in professional […] Read more
Growing your mid-sized farm
Mid-winter is a great time to review the financial tools that help you make the best decisions
Reading Time: 3 minutes Often when we talk about growing a business, the assumption is that the way to do it is by growing in size. In agriculture, that could be farming more land, increasing the number of livestock, buying more quota, among others. One of my favourite mantras is that “better is better before bigger is better.” In […] Read more
Follow the five per cent rule
Incremental changes can have a big impact on your operation
Reading Time: 4 minutes You may have heard the saying, “Take care of the small things and the big things take care of themselves.” This is a great piece of advice for life in general, and it also very much applies in the context of running a farm business, where even small changes can have a big impact on […] Read more
Create your foreign exchange strategy
Can you afford to be exposed to the risks of volatile currency markets?
Reading Time: 3 minutes When it comes to managing risk to their operations, farmers are well versed in the usual suspects — whether that’s risks in the field like adverse weather, disease and equipment failure, or whether it’s spiking interest rates, lack of adequate cash flow, or being over-leveraged. But one often overlooked risk is when dealing with foreign […] Read more
Top financial tools for farmers
January is a great time to review the financial tools that help you make the best decisions
Reading Time: 4 minutes For many of us, the new year is a time of reflection. It’s an opportunity to take stock of where you’ve been, where you are, and where you’re going, both personally and professionally. This is certainly important for farmers, as January is a good month for a detailed review of the administrative side of the […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
