STATESVILLE, NC – Carolina Farm Credit is now accepting applications for the 10th year of the Ag Biz Planner program. This e-learning course teaches financial and business planning, budgeting, and other farm management topics that are essential to a farm’s success. The ten-module course is facilitated by Farm Credit University, in conjunction with AgCarolina and Cape Fear Farm Credits in North Carolina and Farm Credit of the Virginias and Colonial Farm Credit in Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia.
Ag Biz Planner aims to support Young, Beginning, and Small (YBS) farmers throughout our territory. Participants range from YBS farmers who are just starting their farming venture, to those who have been farming for several years and are looking for guidance to improve their operation. The program offers online modules and videos, application exercises with relatable examples, and a fun and interactive final conference to wrap up the course. Several leading speakers and advisors in the agriculture industry will be the highlight at the final conference. The course topics include trends in agriculture, working with your ag lender, personal finances, farm growth and transition management, creating the most useful farm financial records, and much more. By the end of the course, each participant will have a complete farm business plan for their farming operation. Additionally, participants will be assigned a Carolina Farm Credit loan officer to serve as their mentor throughout the course.
Carolina Farm Credit will accept up to five participants for the program. All applications are due July 31, 2018. The program will begin with a webinar in Statesville on October 1. The course will conclude with a conference in Raleigh, NC on January 9-10, 2019. Applications, a course outline, and program information are available at carolinafarmcredit.com. Individuals selected for the program will be notified after August 15.
Carolina Farm Credit is a stockholder-owned cooperative providing financing to full and part-time farmers and agricultural-related businesses and providing financing for the construction and purchase of homes in 54 counties through 32 branch offices. Other financial services available are credit life insurance, appraisal services, leasing programs, and financial planning.
For more than 100 years Farm Credit has been supporting rural communities and agriculture with reliable, consistent credit and financial services.
Carolina Farm Credit serves over 10,000 members with loans outstanding totaling more than $1.5 billion. The Association’s territory covers the western half of North Carolina, with branch offices located in Albemarle, Asheboro, Asheville, Boone, Browns Summit, Burnsville, Carthage, Concord, Conover, Ellerbe, Graham, Hendersonville, Jefferson, Lenoir, Lexington, Lincolnton, Monroe, Murphy, Pilot Mountain, Roxboro, Rural Hall, Salisbury, Shelby, Siler City, Sparta, Spindale, Statesville, Taylorsville, Waynesville, Wilkesboro, Yadkinville, and Yanceyville.
Directors for Carolina Farm Credit are W. Rex Bell, Chairman, Statesville, David M. Coltrane, Vice-Chairman, Pleasant Garden; John M. Barnard, Statesville; E. Bernard Beck, Seagrove; Mark A. Bray, Lawsonville; Susie J. Gambill, Sparta; Joseph A. Lail, Shelby; Clark M. Newlin, Haw River; Thomas E. Porter, Jr., Concord; Eric McPherson, Snow Camp; D. Kaleb Rathbone, Waynesville; Lewis E. Smith, Lincolnton; Vickie N. Smitherman, East Bend; L. Kim Starnes, Salisbury; Dr. Alton Thompson, Summerfield.