Chris LeMaster
Livestock & Forage Agent
Cherokee, Spartanburg, & Union Counties
Over 97% of US farms are family-owned, and less than one-third have a formal succession plan.
Let’s try to imagine a business that is worth over a million dollars in assets and holdings. A new investor/partner has started with the company and scheduled a meeting with the CEO/Founder to discuss the transition plan. The CEO obliges, but instead of meeting in an office, they meet at the CEO’s kitchen table. The table is covered with invoices, receipts, seed, parts list and so forth. During the meeting, the CEO’s phone constantly rings with calls about fences, hay, and other “urgencies.” Both parties are beginning to wonder if this is a waste of time; unfortunately, the meeting gets cut short by an issue with a hay baler in the field. No progress was made.
This is a common scene in our family-run farms. Everyone would agree that developing a succession plan is a high-value task for our farm families. Still, the small, less valuable task often takes precedence due to its perceived urgency.
On September 21st, there were over 75 farmers at the succession planning workshop in Pacolet, South Carolina. Speakers from FSA, SC land, and Clemson Extension gave farm families the tools necessary to get started with this vital task. We covered much ground but only scratched the surface of these critical topics. We are working on suggestions and feedback for the next installment of this workshop series. There were farmers from several counties in our region, and we had a great deal of support from our sponsors.
We look forward to equipping farmers now so these farms will still be in farmland tomorrow. Farms are businesses, and successful businesses need a good plan for carrying on to the next generation.
