The Rural Voice, 1999-03, Page 50READY TO LAY
PULLETS
BABY'CHICKS
WHITE & BROWN EGG LAYERS
FISHER POULTRY FARM INC.
AYTON ONT. NOG 1C0
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Advice
In times of crisis, an
outside eye can help
The current situation in the pork
industry is unlike farm crises of the
past, says Doug Richards, senior
field representative with Ontario
Pork, because it affects everyone in
the industry.
"Right now no one in the pork
industry is making money," Richards
told farmers attending the artnual
Centralia Swine Research Update in
Kirkton, January 27. This is unlike
the farm debt crisis of the 1980s
when some farmers were in bad
trouble while others were not
concerned.
Richards, who worked as a Farm
Family Advisor in the past helping
12 farm families deal with their
financial problems, advised getting
someone outside your business to
help you get perspective. "Even the
best producers can become blinded
by the scope, size and apparent
insurmountability of problems that
financial stress can bring on," he
said.
"If people recognize the problem
the battle is half won," Richards said,
but too often farmers don't recognize
there is a problem until it's too late to
find solutions.
For instance, "if your feed bill is
60, 90 or 120 days in arrears, you are
in trouble." Under that situation you
are using your current income to pay
for past expenses, he said. The pigs
you fed are long gone and you still
have their bills to pay.
Another sign of trouble is having to
decide if you should pay one creditor
at the expense of another. Juggling
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46 THE RURAL VOICE
creditors won't work for long
because one day they'll all come
calling.
A third party can help people in
crisis see things with new eyes. For
instance, is it a short-term problem or
a long-term problem? If a problem is
caused by an outbreak of disease in
the barn, or low prices, the problem
will eventually be corrected and if
everything else in the operation is
sound, the situation will eventually
improve.
Is the problem with capital costs or
cashflow? Richards said he ran into
cases where people had been using
their operating loan to finance capital
purchases. If you have been doing
that, he told farmers, "this spring you
will be strapped for operating money
when you need to plant your crops."
Developing a business plan is key
to finding a solution to the problem.
The plan will allow you talk to your
lender and other creditors and show
you have a plan to deal with the
problem.
"Lenders don't want barns," he
said. "I have yet to hear of one bank
(in this crisis) that has come in and
seized a farm", (though he admitted
in some cases lenders won't likely
have a choice).
Lenders want to work with farmers
to help them keep going and pay
their bills. But don't go to talk to
your lender unless you have a plan of
action, he advised.
Keep all creditors informed.
Unsecured creditors will likely work
with you because they don't have
much choice since they can't seize
assets, Richards said. "They've got
nothing to lose."
Work with your family and
employees and keep them informed,
he said. Employees may have ideas
as to how to cut costs, ideas that may
not solve the problem but will help.0
Tips for getting an
edge in 1999's crops
In a feature article in last month's
issue, Mervyn Erb provided some tips
on how growers can get an edge in
what promises to be a challenging
crop year ahead. There wasn't
enough room to include all his tips so