Farmers urged to plan ahead for retirement & succession
30/3/2017
After decades building and running any business the thought of passing the business on can be daunting. This is especially true of Farm Businesses according to Rabobank succession planning facilitator Rosemary Bartle. "People often ask, 'why so much of an issue in agriculture and not other businesses?' "I think it's because there is so much tied up between family and business and where we live, and [farms are] often very large assets."
After decades building and running any business the thought of passing the business on can be daunting. This is especially true of Farm Businesses according to Rabobank succession planning facilitator Rosemary Bartle."People often ask, 'why so much of an issue in agriculture and not other businesses?'
"I think it's because there is so much tied up between family and business and where we live, and [farms are] often very large assets."
"A lot of the time with farmers, their whole identity is tied up with farming [and they] don't have a lot of time to develop other interests."
But with the sector predicted to exceed $63 billion in value this year, advisers are warning that farmers must start planning their futures, or risk their businesses long term profitability.
After living in Melbourne for nearly 30 years Sue Heward returned to the Riverland to help her parents on the family's Monash fig farm.
She said her family was slowly starting to address the issue of succession planning.
"I certainly think that some people probably have their head in the sand a little bit when it comes to succession planning, but I do think it's hard," Ms Heward said.
"I suppose where we're really at is just the start and looking at a change from the orchard being just Mum and Dad — a partnership — to I guess a whole team approach.
"Probably for my Dad, it is a little bit scary because he works seven days a week and that's all he's ever done, so the thought that he might have some rest time and some relaxation time is a very new thing for him.
Ms Bartle said farmers across Australia needed to put more thought into their retirement, to avoid confusion around inheritance, family conflict and to ensure they themselves would be looked after in the future.
"First and foremost, it's actually about looking after the older generation as they start to step back from the farm, plus you've got the issue of inheritance and estate planning, which has a big impact on off-farm children," she said.
"You've got such a big asset to deal with and you want to make sure that it's passed on and it remains profitable.
