O
perating a successful farm requires
pre-planning. Farmers have to plan
what crops to plant, where to plant them,
how much seed to buy and dozens of other
details to ensure that their farms run smoothly.
Without that planning, the farm would be less
productive and the farmer and his family would
suffer. The same concept applies to passing
the family farm on to future generations. With
some advance planning, farmers can help
safeguard their farms so that their children
and grandchildren can continue the farming
tradition for years to come.
Each farmer’s succession plan will be
unique to that farmer because it is based on
that family’s wants and needs, but the first
step in making a succession plan is the same
for every farmer. They need to picture what
they want for their family in the future and
how the family farm fits into that picture. For
some farmers, there may be one child who is
involved in farm operations and other children
who have moved away. For others, all of their
children may be working the farm. Some
farmers may be concerned about how they will
support themselves if they retire from farming
and have their children take over the farm.
Others may be thinking about selling the farm,
but are concerned about the taxes.
Once a farmer has a picture in mind about
the future of the farm, the next step would be
to sit down with a lawyer to talk through the
farmer’s options. For some