When talking about farming, it is important to mention that farmers are often faced with a lack of time. Striving to manage all farm activities timeously in order to ensure the best possible outcome means there is not much time left for planning and, in the end, analysing the complete crop production.
Also, most important is a business plan for your farm. Many often use the phrase “You wouldn’t drive a car without a steering wheel, so why would you farm without a feasible business plan”?
For that reason, organisation is an essential component of successful farming. Generally speaking, a well-prepared farmer is a successful farmer. In other words, the organisation of all farm activities, as well as farm materials and other farm processes, will enable a better flow of the entire crop production.
It’s very important to plan and organise all farm activities before the season’s onset. You are probably asking yourself: why is this so important? Well, there are three main reasons why every successful farmer should organise all his farm activities in advance. These are as follows:
A farmer should know exactly which tasks he is going to perform at any moment. That way, a farmer knows exactly when he plans to do soil tillage, how many types of soil tillage he is going to perform, how many days the soil will be empty prior to the planting of crops, and other necessary activities.
Basically, all tasks are to be chronologically arranged by a farmer, making him more adjustable to any unexpected events.
Based on the list of planned tasks, a farmer can organise his time in addition to other important activities.
Since farming is often a varying job, having the list of all planned tasks handy keeps a farmer in line with his crop production. A farmer who plans all activities knows when and for how long he is going to use some machinery, farm materials, and seasonal workers.
That way, a farmer can prepare himself in advance to rent or buy the necessary machinery, purchase farm materials, as well as recruit additional workers.
By organising farm activities, a successful farmer can plan how much farm materials he needs to buy. In fact, he can plan to purchase the exact amount of seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, and other items.
More importantly, by knowing which machinery will be used, a farmer can plan the exact amount of money for purchasing or renting some. Finally, he can also plan his finances.
Based on the aforementioned, we can conclude that planning farm activities is half the work. But what is more important, a farmer has to have a set of his best farm practices according to which he will make a plan for the upcoming season.
A good business plan is a must for a new farmer: it provides a clear strategy and objectives, and helps everyone involved in the operation to stay productive and focused.
In compiling a business plan, you may make mistakes. Never mind! These can be corrected easily on paper before the plan is implemented, saving you money.
Many prospective farmers fail to include information on competitors, either through lack of knowledge of them, or because they are not aware of the significance of this competition. Show your awareness of the competition, and discuss how you intend to do better.
Suppliers, for instance, play a key role in every farming operation. If you are unable to receive inputs efficiently, your production will suffer, and you might not even be able to deliver your products to the market.
Building and strengthening relationships with suppliers will contribute to the long-term sustainability of your farming operation, so mention your suppliers in the business plan.