Farm Industry Trends
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Be Careful of Organic Demand
For several years, farmers who grew organic crops were able to generate higher returns than non-organic farmers. However, with the current recession, those days may be coming to an end. Organic farmers are required to meet tough standards to have their crops and food products branded as organic. Generally, they are not able to use […]
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Farmland as an Investment
Fortune magazine just had a interesting article on farmland being a great investment, both in today’s environment over the last 5o years. Part of the article was about investing in US farmland and part was about investing in farmland internationally. I think the themes in the article hold true. We will always need to eat and […]
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The Road From Good To Great
As a CPA, I review a lot of financial statements. As part of this review, I try to determine the ratios that separate the business from other businesses in the same industry. Sometimes these ratios are positive and sometimes they are negative. For comparing ratios for farmers, a great site is the Farm […]
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The Evolution of the U.S. Corn Ethanol Industry
In a recent article in the Regional Economic Development publication of the Federal Reserve of St. Louis, the three primary phases of the U. S. Corn Ethanol industry were documented. These primary phases are: Birth – the events surrounding the oil shocks of the 1970’s from the OPEC price increases Development – The decline in […]
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Farmland Values Drop for the Quarter
The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported that for their district (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin) farm land values dropped 6% from the previous quarter (the largest drop for a quarter since 1985). Also, the year-over-year increase in farmland values was up only 2% for the first quarter of 2009. The drop ranged from […]
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Don’t Wait Too Long
The Department of Agriculture released many crop reports today. As a result, corn, soybeans and wheat prices were sharply lower on the cash and futures markets. In many cases, the drop was 10% or more. Prices has steadily risen over the last few weeks and there were many chances to lock in a profit on […]