Get started with TXFED.org’s Beginning Farmer Learning Package!
This page has resources for Business Planning, Farm Financial Management, General Education, Legal & Regulatory, Marketing & Sales, Taxes, Funding, and USDA Programs.
Business Planning
- AgPlan, Center for Farm Management at the University of Minnesota
- A free online business planning template with built in resources. You can build your business plan directly in the software and share with others for review.
- Building a Sustainable Business, SARE
- A Comprehensive guide to building a farm business plan, including identifying values, analysis of historic and current situation, defining mission and goals, developing marketing, operations, human resource, and financial strategies, and how to implement and monitor over time. Includes useful worksheets on each topic.
- Farmers Guide to Business Structures, SSARE
- A useful guide from a well-known legal organization (Farm Commons) on different business structure options for farms/raches, including sole proprietorships, general partnerships, LLC’s, C-Corps, and more.
- Lean Business Plan Template, created by Ash Maurya with adaptations from Kitchen Table Consultants and TCLF (Texas Center for Local Food).
- Thinking about a business plan and don’t know where to start? Try this template!
- Loan Readiness Toolkit, MSU Center for Regional Food Systems
- Free business planning and financial statement templates
- Sample Business Plans, Small Farms Program at Oregon State University
- Includes three solid business plan examples (full business plans), and an example FSA microloan application.
- SWOT Analysis Template, Business Balls (shared by Cornell Small Farms Program)
- A simple template to analyze your farm’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. SWOT analysis helps you understand your business position and strategize decision making.
Farm Financial Management
- AgriLogics MARS App – free software prividing insight on income and expense category based on Schedule F tax form. Designed specifically for small and beginning farmers. Available for all iOS and Android devices.
- Fearless Farm Finances, Marbleseed (formerly MOSES)
- Free online training videos on a variety of financial topics including goal setting, record keeping, financial statements, analysis, and budgeting.
- Farm Financial Tools, Intervale Center
- Straightforward spreadsheet tools (and other resources) that serve as great starting points for basic financial statements – asset inventory, balance sheet, and cash flow projections/income statement.
- Glossary of Financial Terms, Good Roots Consulting
- Helpful list of commonly used financial terms to help you sort through the jargon!
- Loan Readiness Toolkit, MSU Center for Regional Food Systems
- Free business planning and financial statement templates.
- National Farmers Union Business Health Assessment Series – Accounting & Credit
- Introduction to Farm and Ranch Accounting Frameworks and Bookkeeping Systems (Accounting Part 1)
- Bookkeeping Set Up, Clean Up, and Maintenance (Accounting Part 2)
- Planning for Cash Flow and Credit in a Farm or Ranch Business
- Excellent videos from consultant Poppy Davis on accounting, bookkeeping, and accessing credit. Recommend watching these in the order listed, especially if you are new to the topic areas. See also her tax videos, below.
- Veggie Compass (also has Livestock & Grain tools), University of Wisconsin Madison
- An advanced spreadsheet tool that helps you analyze your costs of production and profitability of different market channels based on data you input.
General Education
- TXFED.org, Texas Center for Local Food
- Free and low cost courses on multiple topics by and for Texas farmers and farmers market organizers
- Farm Business Toolbox, National Farmers Union
- A great list of resources. Particularly recommend checking out their linked videos under Accounting, Taxation, and Credit (also listed in other parts of this resource sheet).
- NCAT ATTRA Publication Library
- An excellent database of publications around all kinds of topics, from sales and marketing to soil health to renewable energy. Search by keyword.
- SARE Resources and Learning
- Another excellent database of educational materials on a variety of sustainable agriculture topics. Search by region, topics, and formats.
- The Farmer’s Office 2nd Edition, Julia Shanks
- A great book about farm business management, record keeping, taxes, and more. Julia also has courses on her website TheFarmersOffice.com.
Legal & Regulatory
- Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance (FARFA) is a Texas-based advocacy organization for independent farmers, ranchers, and consumers. Becoming a paid member (check website for level) gives you access to individual consultations. Though not legal advice, FARFA has expertise in regulatory issues in Texas, including around cottage food, sales/food safety, and meat processing.
- Farm Commons is a national nonprofit organization that provides legal workshops and has an excellent library of resources on legal questions. Becoming a paid member provides access to additional resources.
Marketing & Sales
TXFED.org by Texas Center for Local Food has many courses to help farmers with marketing, from selecting the right sales channel to a deep dive into farmers markets, CSAs, value-added products, or agritourism. You’ll want to peruse the selection!
Marketing and Branding
- Local Food Marketing Resources, Taste the Local Difference
- Free blog posts, webinar recordings, downloadable guides, and a self-paced online course to help your effectively market and sell local food.
Sales Channel Selection
- Marketing Tip Sheets, NCAT
- A series of tip sheets on how to sell to different buyers
- Guide to Marketing Channel Selection: How to Sell Through Wholesale & Direct Marketing Channels, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County
- A comparison of marketing channels with farm data and a good overview of what to expect by buyer type.
- Market Channel Selection Tool, Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems
- A useful guide for beginning farmers to assess themselves and their farm capacity for different market channels.
Produce Distributors
- How to Sell to Produce Distributors, North Carolina Cooperative Extension
- Great guide to help farmers understand produce distributors’ timeline and needs. Includes resources on how to prepare initial contact, onboarding, and your first order.
Farm to School
- Bringing the Farm to School Toolkit
- A comprehensive toolkit for farmers and ranchers interested in selling to schools.
- Local Food for Schools (LFS) District List, Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA)
- Find Texas school districts who particiapted in Local Food for Schools, then find Nutrition Director contact information in TDA’s open database.
Taxes
- Agricultural Financial, Tax, and Asset Protection (AgFTAP), University of Arkansas and other partners
- Online repository of tax, financial, and asset protection resources, including estate/sucsession planning and heirs’ property. A lot of information here!
- Agricultural Tax Training, University of Arkansas L.L.M.
- Part of the AgFTAP database, this page has extensive training materials on federal income taxes for farm businesses. Includes training videos, instructor notes, slides, and evaluation materials.
- Tax Filing Decision Tree (e.g., should I file? Should I file a Schedule F?)
- Part of the AgFTAP database, this page has extensive training materials on federal income taxes for farm businesses. Includes training videos, instructor notes, slides, and evaluation materials.
- Introduction to Farm and Ranch Taxes Part 1 and Part 2, National Farmers Union
- Excellent video breakdown of farm and ranch taxation topics by Poppy Davis, a consultant who works with NFU’s Beginning Farmer Institute.
- IRS Publication 225, Farmers’ Tax Guide
- It’s dense, but if you have specific questions about tax rules and regulations for your farm, search this guide and you should find an answer about what the IRS expects. Regularly updated.
- Rural Tax Education, Utah State University
- Excellent collection of farm and ranch tax resources, including for new farmers and small farmers.
Funding
- See USDA programs, below
- Quick Reference Guide: Texas Farm Business Funding Opportunities, Katie Tritsch
- Curated list of grants, loans, and financial assistance programs for for-profit farmers in Texas.
- Registering for Your Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) Guide, Texas Center for Local Food
- Ambrook Funding Library
- Free farm funding library with filters and search option.
USDA Programs
Check out our Working with USDA webinar recordings to see how Texas farmers and ranchers are utilizing USDA programs to build and grow their farm businesses!
- FSA Farm Numbers – What, Why, and How
- Working with NRCS: Conservation Planning & EQIP
- FSA Farm Loan Opportunities
Farm Service Agency (FSA)
- How and Why to Get a Farm Number, RAFI-USA
- Concise article on the importance and process of getting your farm number
- FSA Loan Assistance Tool
- Very usefull tool that can walk you through FSA eligibility requirements, provide a list of loan programs that fit your needs, explain the loan-making process, and provide a list of lenders that work with FSA in your state.
- FSA Educational Hub, FarmRaise
- Accessible resources and guides for producers interested in FSA loans or disaster programs. There are decision tools for some specific programs.
- Farm Service Agency Loans: The Ins and Outs of Growing a Farm with Federal Loans, National Young Farmers Coalition
- Excellent plain language guide on FSA loans, including stories from real young farmers across the country. Interest rates or terms are likely outdated, so make sure to check with FSA directly.
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
- NRCS Hacks Training – Conservation Planning 101, Michigan Food & Farming Systems
- Brief training on how to “hack” your EQIP, CSP, or other NRCS conservation program application to improve your ranking. Link takes you to a folder with video and supporting documents.
Explore USDA Programs
- Get Started! A Guide to USDA Resources for Historically Underserved Farmers and Ranchers, USDA NRCS
- A great primer on the most relevant USDA programs for historically underserved (beginning, limited resource, minority, women, and veteran) producers. Translated into multiple languages.
- Local and Regional Food System Resource Guide, USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
- Useful reference guide on USDA programs that support local and regional food systems, ranging from conservation, production, processing, distribution, marketing, food waste/loss/recovery, and research/education/technical assistance.
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