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business planning

Risk and Uncertainty

This series of articles will provide an introduction to risk and uncertainty, and discuss tools and strategies that can be used to mitigate risk and uncertainty.

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3 Ways to Manage Risk in Your Farm Business

Most people working in agriculture are in the business of commodity. And in the long run, in a commodity business, there is one absolute key to success. It’s pretty straightforward: be a low-cost producer. It can be difficult to make it happen, but necessary, especially in today’s volatile financial climate.

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The Great Margin Squeeze: Strategies for Managing Through the Cycle

After many years of high commodity prices and strong profitability, the landscape in the row-crop sector has shifted dramatically. Today, farmers are facing a substantial margin squeeze. Purdue’s early estimates of the 2015 budget for operations on average-quality Indiana farmland projected a loss ranging from $156 to $317 per acre.

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Managing Your Farm Business during an Economic Downturn

Prices for corn, soybeans, and wheat have all declined precipitously since the drought induced peaks of 2012. Bumper crops in 2013 and 2014 pushed crop agriculture from a tight supply/demand balance, and record high prices, to a situation where attention is now focused on crop surpluses and declining prices.

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Managing Risk in Your Farm Business

Most people working in agriculture are in the business of commodities. And in the long run, in a commodity business, it’s crucial to be a low-cost producer. Here are some practical ways that you can start lowering your costs today.

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The Business Climate for Agriculture: Positioning for Turbulent Times

A key theme underlying the discussions and presentations at the 2013 Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank Agricultural Symposium — the Shifting Nexus of Global Agriculture — was the uncertainty the industry is facing in many dimensions

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Rental Agreements for Farm Buildings and Livestock Facilities

Farm buildings and livestock facilities often outlast their owner’s need for them, but are still usable. Other operators want the services of certain types of farm buildings but are not in a position to invest in new facilities. Both parties can benefit by developing a lease arrangement.

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Beef Cow Rental Arrangements for Your Farm

Managing risk is required for many farm enterprises to be profitable and sustainable. Leasing assets, rather than purchasing them, is a form of risk management as it typically requires less capital. Leasing or sharing arrangements between farm operators and property owners have long been used to acquire control of land.

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Strategies for Success in Turbulent Times: Ten Strategic Initiatives

Farm businesses are facing increasing complexity and uncertainty in today’s turbulent business climate. Farms continue to be family based businesses and are modest size compared too much of the industrial sector, but an increasing number of farms are becoming multi-million dollar gross sales businesses with a sizeable work-force and rapidly increasing financial capital and land resources.

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Structural Change in Agriculture: Implications for the Farming Sector

The global food and agribusiness industry is in the midst of major changes – changes in product characteristics, in worldwide distribution and consumption, in technology, in size and structure of firms in the industry, and in geographic location of production and processing.

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