The Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Farm Business Plan was used to compare the characteristics of beginning farmers receiving direct Farm Ownership (FO) loans in fiscal 2005 by the type of delivery mechanism. Regular FO loans were commonly used by small and intermediate size family farming...

Farmers must earn revenues that both cover costs and provide adequate returns. The goal of this research was to understand how diversified farmers measure their cost of production and determine prices. We conducted in-depth interviews of diversified Vermont farmers and used the constant...

Identifying the least-cost strategy of obtaining a technology is important. This study determined the break-even cropped area necessary to economically justify the purchase of Precision Agriculture (PA) equipment versus the custom hiring of the PA services. The results suggest that a commercial...

Real returns to farm operators have been at the highest level since 1973. However, indications from the USDA and Federal Open Market Committee are that returns are not projected to remain at those levels and interest rates will rise in the next decade. This paper evaluates the potential impact...

Volatile net farm incomes and potential for higher interest rates has strengthened the importance of managing liquidity. This paper evaluates the effectiveness of increasing liquidity levels as a means of reducing repayment risk for agricultural firms. Using a base case farming operation and...

This investment analysis evaluates a 320-acre mixed enterprise farm involved in producing broilers, hay, and pine tress over a 30-year planning horizon. A net present value analysis was conducted to determine the feasibility of this investment, A sensitivity analysis was also performed to...

Foreign labor has become increasingly important component of U.S. agriculture. Disruption in the supply of agricultural labor has been argued to significantly affect agricultural production. This study analyzes the impacts of foreign labor shortages on the dairy industry using national survey...