Year-End Farm Finances: Taking Stock, Gaining Clarity, and Planning Ahead
As the year comes to a close, it is a good time to step back and take a careful look at farm finances—not just for tax purposes, but to better understand how the operation is really performing and where it may be headed. For many farmers, late December and early January are when receipts finally get sorted, spreadsheets are updated, and the numbers begin to tell the story of the year that just ended. That process alone—consolidating expenses and revenues—is valuable. But the real benefit comes when those numbers are used to inform decisions, not just record them. Year-end financial work is not simply bookkeeping. It is one of the few opportunities during the year to regain a sense of control over the operation, identify quiet problem areas, and create options for the future rather than reacting to circumstances as they arise. Bookkeeping Tools: What I Use and Why The first place to start is with the tools used to track farm finances. Rather than Microsoft Excel, I use LibreOffice , a f...
