Farm Operations
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Deferred Sales Contracts
We had a reader ask the following question: “I am delivering 5000 bu of soybeans to the elevator today and will price them at today’s market. I want to receive the money in Jan. 2013 to keep this income out of 2012. do I need to have anything in the contract with CGB for IRS […]
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Intended Corn Plantings Up Over 7 Million Acres in 2 Years
I was reviewing the intended corn acre plantings just issued by the USDA and some of the numbers that jump out at me are: Total intended corn acre plantings of 95.9 million acres for 2012. This is up almost 4 million acres over 2011 and up over 7 million acres from 2010. This is the […]
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Number of Farms Get Smaller, But They Produce More
Most of you are aware that the number of farms in the US continues to get smaller, but they produce more and more. In the dairy sector, one report from the Idaho Dairymen’s Association indicated in 2008, there were over 800 dairies in the state of Idaho. Just three years later, this number had dropped […]
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Top Estate Planning Mistakes Farmers Make – Conclusion
We just finished a three part series on the top estate planning mistakes farmers make and we had some readers ask which one was most important? This is strictly my opinion, but I think the first one listed “procrastination” is the worst mistake farmers and probably all business owners make. Many farmers will never have […]
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My First Tornado Warning!
I got into Nashville late Thursday night/early Friday morning. Friday morning I headed over to the Gaylord Opryland complex. Wow, what a facility. There was probably five acres or more of glass roofing and it felt like a 10 minute walk from my car to the convention center. I was able to attend the last […]
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MF Global Loss (If Any) Will Be Deducted in 2012
We got the following question from one of our readers: ” I made profits on commodity trades in 2011. The amount was $20,000. The 1099 from MF Global shows $20,000. However, I have received only $14,000 and probably will not get the entire $20,000. How much do I have to pay tax on?; the $14,000 that I […]
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Don’t Forget Farm Income Averaging
With the March 1 farm tax return deadline rapidly approaching, I want to remind our farmers to make sure they actively review their tax return to see if farm income averaging will save them money this year. Farm income averaging allows you to smooth out your income tax liability for the current year if this […]
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Not All Farmland is Going Up in Value
When we see in the headlines that farms in Iowa and other parts of the corn belt are going for $10,000, $15,000 and perhaps $20,000 an acre, I think we automatically assume that all farmland values across the US are increasing. However, in reviewing the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, VA agricultural survey for the […]
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Top Producer Seminar – Day Two
Wow, what an action packed day. First, breakfast was at 6 am to get the day started. At 7 am, we had the taping of the show for the US Farm Report to air this weekend. At 8:15, my breakout sessions started. Each one last 55 minutes and were back-to-back-to-back. I thought the last session […]
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Top Producer Seminar – First Day
The Top Producer Seminar started out today with a bang. Peter Zeihan with Stratfor Group gave an interesting presentation on the economic outlook in general and for ag. It was very interesting to see a map with an outline of the world’s river systems and how that has affected the world’s economy over the last […]