Farm Credit East Industry Insights: Recent Episodes
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At Farm Credit East's annual meeting held on March 25 in Albany, N.Y., the five director candidates seeking three seats on the Farm Credit East board in 2024 participated in a live forum to learn more about why members should vote for them to serve t heir cooperative.
Listen to the Director Candidate Forum held at Farm Credit East's 2023 Annual Meeting which asked questions of the four candidates running for two Board of Directors seats in 2023.
In May’s Knowledge Exchange Partner, we take a look at the newly announced Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loan program that’s open to ag businesses and compare this program to the Paycheck Protection Program. This article gives an overview of the difference in benefits of these two programs. The second article outlines the $19 billion dollars in COVID-19 relief from the USDA, as part of the new USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program. In this program, the Agricultural Marketing Service will partner with regional and local distributors to purchase and distribute fresh produce, dairy products and meats to food banks, community organizations and other non-profits serving Americans in need. For more information, visit FarmCreditEast.com. I’m Heather Hunt and this is Farm Credit East’s Knowledge Exchange Partner.
The Value-Added Producer Grant program helps agricultural producers enter into value-added activities related to the processing and marketing of new products. Nathan Rudgers, Director of Business Development, gives an overview of the grant funding process and details prospective applicants should have in mind. Our second article shares a 2020 Northeast forest products industry outlook. Eric Kingsley, Vice President of Innovative Natural Resource Solutions LLC, discusses how the way we utilize the forest is ever changing, and the opportunities and challenges this shifting landscape presents.
In response to the tightening labor market, producers both nationally and in the Northeast have increased their participation in the H-2A temporary agricultural worker program. The number of workers brought in seasonally under the H-2A program nationwide has roughly doubled over the last six years. While the increase in the Northeast has been smaller, it is still significant.
This month’s Knowledge Exchange Partner provides an overview of Northeast farmers’ markets and their importance as a marketing channel for many Farm Credit East customers. We also give a summary of our annual mid-year agricultural conditions report.
With President Trump imposing tariffs to Chinese imports, as well as import tariffs on aluminum and steel, trading partners have retaliated with tariffs on U.S. exports. Given these escalating trade tensions, Farm Credit East Knowledge Exchange takes a look at U.S. agricultural exports and their significance to U.S. farm income. Also in this month’s issue, we highlight FarmCreditEast.com’s Today’s Harvest blog for timely topics relevant to Northeast farming, commercial fishing and forestry.
If you have a loan priced with a variable interest rate, you have seen increases in your interest rate recently. Approximately two-thirds of Farm Credit East loans are variable-rate loans. In this month’s Knowledge Exchange Partner, we look at how interest rates are set and answer some borrower questions. We’ve also released our Industry Snapshots, which provide you with the latest business and market intelligence from our industry experts.
The Northeast Dairy Farm Summary (DFS) is scheduled for release on April 30. The first article in April’s Knowledge Exchange Partner gives a snapshot of the DFS’s findings and provides a few resources to help your farm leverage these results. Our second article looks at the green industry, summarizing the key demographic and economic take-aways from a webinar Farm Credit East hosted with Dr. Charles Hall last month.
The first article in this month’s Knowledge Exchange Partner summarizes information from the February 2018 release of the Dairy Markets and Policy report on Changes to the Margin Protection Program for Dairy Producers. Our second article was written by Hank Soule who has 30 years of experience in New England seafood harvesting, production and fishery management. He reports on the health of the Northeast commercial fishing industry and some innovative ideas that have inspired high-value products from what was once viewed as waste.
Does a good overall economy help or hurt the ag economy? Farm Credit’s Knowledge Exchange team looks at the data behind this question in February’s Knowledge Exchange Partner. We also highlights Farm Credit East’s Industry Snapshots, updated quarterly to give you a glimpse into the latest business and market intelligence from our industry experts.
The largest overhaul of the U.S. tax code in 30 years provides overall positive benefits to many Northeast farmers. This month’s Knowledge Exchange Partner reviews some of the provisions of the tax law that will affect producers in 2018. The second article takes a look at the U.S. dairy market and recaps year-over-year comparisons. It also touches on international competition and provides an industry outlook for the coming year.
Farmers are feeling pressure to take more strategic approaches to their marketing. If not, they risk plateauing or, in some cases, declining sales. In this month’s KEP, Christopher Wayne from GrowNYC, shares a few of FARMroots high-impact strategies to help farmers get the most value from farmers’ markets. The second article in this month’s issue looks at the geographical make-up of the Senate and House ag committees that will take the lead in writing the 2018 Farm Bill.
In November’s Knowledge Exchange Partner, we explore Controlled Environmental Agriculture, what’s driving its growth, current barriers and what’s in store for this method of farming in the future. The second article gives industry updates and a few predictions for 2018 in the dairy, timber, cash field, livestock, fruit, greenhouse and nursery, aquatic, and vegetable sectors.
Across the United States a trend has been emerging: For the first time, the overall rural population has been declining as birthrates have fallen and more people move to metro areas. This population shift has numerous implications for Northeast Agriculture and we discuss some of these in this month’s Knowledge Exchange Partner. We’ve also got an eye on Congress this month. Read this issue for a look at three legislative initiatives that are worth tracking. For more information, visit FarmCreditEast.com.
In September’s Knowledge Exchange Partner, we review H-2A usage across the Northeast, and some of the program’s regulatory challenges that have been an issue for producers. Our second article addresses the considerations that come with preparing the next generation for farm management. We provide some key insights on how to understand multi-generational dynamics and plan for a generational transfer.
This month's Knowledge Exchange Partner shares a new section of our website containing snapshots for nine Northeast agriculture, forest products and commercial fishing industries, and provides a look into Knowledge Exchange's Key Economic Indicator chart series.
In this month's issue we explore Amazon's intent to acquire Whole Foods Market and the strategic possibilities behind it. This issue also takes a look at how the wet spring is impacting Northeast growers in the field crop and fruit industries.
Trade disputes with Canada in the dairy and forest products industries have been at the forefront of the news lately. Each disputes are quite different, and rather complex. This month’s Knowledge Exchange Partner offers succinct explanations behind each of the trade controversies.
In this month’s Knowledge Exchange Partner, we look at the importance of benchmarking and tracking financial performance. First with a snapshot of the results of the Dairy Farm Summary, Farm Credit’s comprehensive financial analysis of the Northeast dairy industry, and then with an article about Farm Credit East’s Benchmark Solutions program, which customers can use to compare their financial results to industry peers.
Buying equipment from a private seller can yield some bargains. But it can also bring headaches if you’re not careful! This month's issue reviews some pitfalls associated with sales "by owner," and outlines a few best practices that could help to mitigate risks. This issue also includes a sneak peek at a few financial highlights in this year's Northeast Dairy Farm Summary.
In this month’s issue, Dr. Steve Reiners looks at vegetable growers’ concerns going into the 2017 growing season: Labor, expenses, FSMA and weather, are but a few. Additionally, Eric Kingsley discusses the challenges for Northeast low-grade wood markets – a critical part of the overall market for timber products.
The month's issue discusses current economic indicators and their effects on the green and grain and oilseed industries into 2017. The housing market is a continuing bright spot for the green industry - a prime influencer of derived demand for products and services. This KEP also reveals the single indicator grain and oilseed producers need to know to predict what prices will do.