Reading Time: 3 minutes Updated — A global financing firm operating at higher altitudes in Canada’s food and agrifood sector now plans to expand its business down to the farm and ranch level. The Canadian arm of Rabobank — an Amsterdam-based farmer co-operative lender, providing banking, leasing and real estate services in more than 38 countries — announced Tuesday […] Read more
Rabobank to offer Canadian farm-level lending
Dutch co-operative bank's Canadian arm to loan directly to farmers, starting on Prairies
Deere taps tractor-hailing tech in bid to break ground in Africa
Low incomes, lack of credit hobble African mechanization
Reading Time: 3 minutes Nanyuki, Kenya/Johannesburg | Reuters — It’s ride-hailing, farm style. Deere and Co. is teaming up with the “Uber of tractors” in Africa and betting on a future where farmers summon machines with the touch of a button. The world’s leading farm equipment maker is outfitting its tractors with startup Hello Tractor’s technology, which allows farmers […] Read more
Australian banks face rural lending reckoning
Agriculture borrowers say banks need a shorter leash and call for a compulsory farm debt mediation system
Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters – Australian potato farmer Tom Fox says he had never missed a bank payment in two decades before a delay sending a shipment to Indonesia during a trade dispute between the countries prompted his lender to force him into receivership in 2013. “I got a letter from the bank lawyers saying I had 12 […] Read more
U.S. women own it
When we think ‘farmer,’ we often also think ‘male.’ Because it’s men who own the farmland, right?
Reading Time: 5 minutes The truth of farmland ownership is changing, especially the picture of who owns farmland in the United States, where the numbers are a bit clearer than here in Canada, and where the shift has been underway for decades. The questions are simple enough: How many women own farmland in the U.S.? What are the parameters […] Read more
A co-trustee’s responsibility
Guide Legal: If asked to serve as a co-trustee, be aware that acting as a rubber stamp will not protect you if things go wrong
Reading Time: 4 minutes When drafting a will, parents often name more than one of their children as the trustees of their estate. Given the dynamics between siblings, it is not uncommon for one child to take on a more active role than another in administering the estate. However, in a recent decision, the Court of Appeal for Ontario […] Read more
Stress tests for change
Here’s a quick way to keep your eye on your cash flow projections this summer to help you plan loan payments and expenses this fall
Reading Time: 4 minutes Knowing how to read and understand financial statements is one of the first steps in assessing financial risk, helping you track how you’re doing compared to previous years (or against sector averages), and how any changes may have an impact on your bank account. From a financial perspective, stress testing can be the ultimate proactive […] Read more
Answer these tough questions before asking for a loan
Looking for a loan or an increase in your line of credit? Here are five key questions you should be able to answer before talking to your lender.
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[...]
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Four common foreign exchange myths
Gwen Paddock, senior director, agriculture at RBC is a specialist in agribusiness. Since earning her B.Sc. with a major in agriculture economics she has been working with agriculture clients. A farmer at heart, Paddock was raised on a beef cow-calf farm outside Guelph, Ont.
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[...]
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A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
