This fall has been one of the better ones in terms of low moisture, getting crops off early, and it has been very colorful, too. Harvest came to a halt across the county with the couple of inches of rain that we had last Tuesday night into Wednesday.
It looks like the drier pattern we have experienced over the last few months is about to end for a while as the National Weather Service is calling for a wetter pattern and above-normal temperatures into much of November.
On average, we should expect about twice the normal rainfall.
Farm business, finance webinar offered
Recently there have been several articles in the media discussing the lack of projected income for corn and soybean farmers due to low prices and input costs remaining stable at higher prices. This scenario can result in farming losses and financial stress for farm families. OSU Extension is offering a farm business and finance webinar series aimed at helping farm families improve financial management knowledge.
This free educational four-session webinar series is funded by the North Central Extension Risk Management Education Grant titled “Ready, Set, Go: Preparing Farms to Successfully Manage Risk.” The webinars will be held on Mondays from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., starting Nov. 16, and continuing through Dec. 7.
Participants can log in from their home or office computer to access the webinar. The sessions will cover the following topics:
• Session 1 – Farm Business Planning and Systems Management. Is the operation large enough and profitable enough to provide family living draw? Is the business plan built on economic considerations? Is there an adequate system for obtaining management information and monitoring business performance?
• Session 2 – Introduction to Financial Statement. It will cover balance sheets, income statements, statements of cash flows, statement of owner equity, and projected cash flow budget.
• Session 3 – Financial Ratios. It will cover liquidity, solvency, profitability, repayment capacity, and financial efficiency.
• Session 4 – Using Financial Data to Drive Decisions. It will cover determining risk capacity of the business, capital improvement plans (short and long term), and individual enterprise analysis to determine profitable enterprises.
Farm business owners who are interested in this free webinar can register by going to http://go.osu.edu/farmwebsurvey. For more information, contact Chris Bruynis at [email protected] or by calling 740-702-3200.
Those registered by Thursday, Nov. 12, will receive the login information and course material on Friday, Nov. 13, by email.
