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Despite the talk and headlines related to Australian farmland and foreign corporate ownership, the  family farm remains the dominant business structure in Australian agriculture. There is a good reason for that; families run their farm operation very different to a corporation. One of the great advantages of a family business is its ability to

Owning and managing a family business can be complicated because you have the added difficulty of managing family members with the day-to-day operations. However, it’s equally a rewarding opportunity as the family work together to build the business you want rather than another’s ambitions. There can be extra pitfalls along the way if you’re

Working on the family farm can be very rewarding. Irrespective if you were born into it, married into or work for a family farming operation, you can benefit from all your hard work going back to farm without the formality that comes with corporate employment. However, with the rewards come challenges when something doesn’t

Livestock finance is a helpful way to buy stock to take advantage of a market when you may not have the cash flow on hand. This flexibility to purchase livestock at the right time is also an intelligent way to make decisions when needed to make your operation more profitable. There are other benefits:

You might have chatted to other farmers about finance and wondered why they got a different rate from you even though you have many similarities between businesses. Or maybe you’re getting offered different loan terms between lenders even though you’re giving them the same info. It’s something we see regularly, and fortunately, we’re able

Farm succession planning is focused on the why, what and when with little emphasis on getting the discussion started. It’s not surprising given the sensitivity around succession planning, but it doesn’t need to be a bad experience if you start in the best possible position. From our starting point, Sprout Agribusiness thinks of farm

• Treat the farm as a business • Plan for change and handover • Communication is the key to success Most family farms are complex beasts as each generation lays down decisions and operations over time, creating historical baggage along the way. From our experience, successful families manage this complexity by treating the farm

Even the closest and most functional family will have rows from time to time. A farming family is no different, and sometimes what can start as a minor issue can snowball into a much bigger dispute that risks the family unity and the farm. This is why working through conflict is so essential to

Cash flow and business analysis are a key part of planning Be realistic about your business goals Compromise You’ve had the first family meeting to talk transition planning, laid out your goals and aspirations for the farm, so what’s next? The next step is to test these goals and aspirations to see if they