Farm income in 2009 will likely decline from previous years, and the value of rural land is likely to flatten out also. Producers need to increase their emphasis on financial and risk management.

A balance sheet is a statement of the financial condition of a business at a specific time. This publication briefly discusses the balance sheet, its uses, and how to evaluate it.

Credit is a requirement for farming and ranching enterprises. Nowadays, lending institutions are requiring more and better information about enterprises before credit will be extended. This is a guide to the documentation ...

Various management factors, including specific practices and the persistence of those practices over time, can greatly influence farm profitability. Some of those factors are managing for high yield or low production cost, ...

Most agricultural producers use cash accounting, although accrual accounting systems are best for measuring business performance. This publication explains how producers can adjust cash basis income to accrual income to ...

This publication lists and defines many financial and economic terms with which producers should be familiar.

Those who succeed will manage their operations as farm/ranch businesses, with more emphasis on recordkeeping, planning, profitability analysis and repayment-based financing, and with better production and business monitoring ...

The availability of credit is critical to agricultural production. In the current tight credit situation, it is important for borrowers to understand the sources of credit and the nature of credit markets. This publications ...

Equipment leasing has gained favor with farmers and ranchers in recent years. This publication discusses how to determine lease cost and analyzes lease vs. purchase options. An example of such an analysis is included.

Successful management of a family business involves certain practices. This publication discusses those characteristics and offers suggestions for handling common pitfalls.