The Farmer's Office


Book Description

A practical, how-to guide for farmers who want to achieve and maintain financial sustainability in their businesses When you decided to become a farmer, you also became an entrepreneur and business person. In order to be ecologically and financially sustainable, you must understand the basics of accounting and bookkeeping, and learn how to manage a growing business. Author Julia Shanks distills years of teaching and business consulting with farmers into this comprehensive, accessible guide. She covers all aspects of launching, running and growing a successful farm business through effective bookkeeping and business management, providing tools to make managerial decisions, apply for a loan or other financing, and offering general business and strategy advice for growing a business. Whether you've been farming for many years or just getting started, The Farmer's Office gives you the tools needed to think like an entrepreneur and thoughtfully manage your business for success.




Holy Crap! I Married a Farmer!


Book Description

Holy Crap! I Married a Farmer! delivers eye-opening moments, treasured memories, and just plain laughter. In these entertaining chapters, you'll discover that juggling farm life with a smile can save your sanity--and your marriage. Who better than Sisters in Agriculture to share experiences about breakdowns and parts runs, family in-laws and farm priorities, money and communication. Their caring hearts, enduring spirits, and witty wisdom will get you through the toughest days on the farm. Inside this book you'll find answers to questions we women on the farm always wondered about but had no one to ask. The stories are filled with insights and real-life reasons to laugh. As one reader shared, "Being married to a farmer is like riding a roller coaster in an amusement park. There will be peaks of joy and celebration...and valleys of stress and frustration. But in Holy Crap! I Married a Farmer! Jolene reminds me that I can enjoy the ride!"




Black Farmers in America


Book Description




Freedom Farmers


Book Description

In May 1967, internationally renowned activist Fannie Lou Hamer purchased forty acres of land in the Mississippi Delta, launching the Freedom Farms Cooperative (FFC). A community-based rural and economic development project, FFC would grow to over 600 acres, offering a means for local sharecroppers, tenant farmers, and domestic workers to pursue community wellness, self-reliance, and political resistance. Life on the cooperative farm presented an alternative to the second wave of northern migration by African Americans--an opportunity to stay in the South, live off the land, and create a healthy community based upon building an alternative food system as a cooperative and collective effort. Freedom Farmers expands the historical narrative of the black freedom struggle to embrace the work, roles, and contributions of southern Black farmers and the organizations they formed. Whereas existing scholarship generally views agriculture as a site of oppression and exploitation of black people, this book reveals agriculture as a site of resistance and provides a historical foundation that adds meaning and context to current conversations around the resurgence of food justice/sovereignty movements in urban spaces like Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, New York City, and New Orleans.




Farms with a Future


Book Description

Do you want to make your farm more dynamic, profitable, and-- above all-- sustainable? Thistlethwaite introduces readers to some of the country's most innovative farmers, in order to help you build a triple-bottom-line farming business focused on economic viability, social justice, and ecological soundness.




Starting & Running Your Own Small Farm Business


Book Description

Running your own small farm is demanding enough, but making it profitable presents a host of further challenges. In this business-savvy guide to farming on a small scale, Sarah Aubrey covers everything from financial plans and advertising budgets to web design and food service wholesalers. Learn how to isolate your target audience and craft artisanal products that will delight and amaze customers. With a solid business strategy in place, you can confidently turn your passion into a productive and profitable venture.




What Do Farmers Do All Day?


Book Description

Farming is one of the most important jobs in our society, but what does a farmer really do all day? This book explores both agricultural and livestock farming in detail and describes the special skills and equipment that a farmer needs in order to ensure that the farm runs smoothly. Other aspects of working with animals and crops are explored, such as selling livestock and vegetables to people or businesses. Engaging visuals and interesting facts make this a great read for developing readers.




The Organic Farmer's Business Handbook


Book Description

Contrary to popular belief, a good living can be made on an organic farm. What’s required is farming smarter, not harder. In The Organic Farmer’s Business Handbook, Richard Wiswall shares advice on how to make your vegetable production more efficient, better manage your employees and finances, and turn a profit. From his twenty-seven years of experience at Cate Farm in Vermont, Wiswall knows firsthand the joys of starting and operating an organic farm—as well as the challenges of making a living from one. Farming offers fundamental satisfaction from producing food, working outdoors, being one’s own boss, and working intimately with nature. But, unfortunately, many farmers avoid learning about the business end of farming; because of this, they often work harder than they need to, or quit farming altogether because of frustrating—and often avoidable—losses. In this comprehensive business kit, Wiswall covers: Step-by-step procedures to make your crop production more efficient Advice on managing employees, farm operations, and office systems Novel marketing strategies What to do with your profits: business spending, investing, and planning for retirement A companion toolkit, available for download upon purchase of the book, offers valuable business tools, including easy-to-use spreadsheets for projecting cash flow, a payroll calculator, comprehensive crop budgets for forty different crops, and tax planners.




The Farmer's Office, Second Edition


Book Description

The no-nonsense, practical guide for farm-preneurs to grow a successful farm business – completely revised and updated You launched your farm because you love working the land and producing food. Yet to succeed you also need to think like an entrepreneur. The Farmer's Office, Second Edition is your must-have toolkit for starting and growing a sustainable agricultural business. Written by a consultant and entrepreneur who has supported hundreds of farm-preneurs, this essential resource is fully revised and updated to empower readers to make sound decisions and manage their farm business for success. Topics include: How to write a business plan for a new or growing venture Detailed descriptions of accounting and business concepts Setting up and using QuickBooks for day-to-day sales and expense tracking, as well as for more complex tasks such as budgeting, cash flow analysis, cost accounting; reading financial statements Leveraging financial information to refine operations, improve profits, and develop strategies for growth Accessing financing and managing debt Adapting to external shocks and learning to pivot Planning for business growth and expansion Understanding mental blocks that can limit an entrepreneur's success. Enhanced with detailed case studies of real farm businesses, The Farmer's Office, Second Edition is your personal business coach, providing guidance for all the business skills needed to succeed as a businessperson in a competitive and rapidly changing world.




George Washington


Book Description

The life and leadership of George Washington on the occasion of the bicentennial of his death.