Cultivating Business The official publication of the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors 2019-2020 Canada Post Mail Publications Agreement Number: 40609661 With Compliments Of: A Passion for Agriculture and a Commitment to Continuous Learning4 The Canadian Association of Farm Advisors2019-2020 / www.cafanet.ca 5 CAFA INSIDERS 07 A Message from CAFA’s National Chair 09 A Message from CAFA’s Executive Director CURRENT, CONNECTED AND CERTIFIED 10 Advice from CAFA’s Board of Directors 46 Upcoming Events FEATURED CONTENT 12 Farm Succession Planning: “Best of Intentions… Unfulfilled Expectations?” 14 The Five Cs We Expect from Our Advisors 16 Farming Income for Family Support Purposes 18 Transition Preparation: Setting up for Major League Success THE 2019-2020 CANADIAN FARM ADVISORS RESOURCE GUIDE 20 The CAFA® Designation is a Mark of Excellence: Join CAFA Today! 21 2019-2020 Canadian Farm Advisors Resource Guide 47 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS Cultivating Business contents Published By: Matrix Group Publishing Inc. 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Cultivating Business Published For: Canadian Association of Farm Advisors Box 270 Seven Sisters Falls, Manitoba R0E 1Y0 Toll free: (877) 474-2871 Direct: (204) 348-3578 Cell: (204) 340-2500 Email: info@cafanet.ca CAFA’s NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS Kim Gerencser BAFS, CFP®, CAFA®, Chair RBC Royal Bank Regina, Saskatchewan Ryan Parker B.Comm., AACI, P.App., P.Ag., CAFA®, Vice Chair Valco Consultants London, Ontario Tom Blonde B.Sc., CPA, CA, CAFA®, Treasurer Baker Tilly GWD Elora, Ontario Catherine McCorquodale M.Sc., LL.B., Secretary Monteith Ritsma Phillips LLP Stratford, Ontario James Fehr BSA, P.Ag, CAFA® RBC Royal Bank Steinbach, Manitoba Rick Gendemann CPA, CA, CAFA® Manning Elliott, Accountants & Business Advisors Abbotsford, British Columbia Shannon Lueke B.Mgt., P.Ag., CAFA® MNP LLP Humboldt, Saskatchewan Steven McQueen CCA, CAFA® McQueen Custom Farm Work Ltd. Brownsville, Ontario Cover photo taken by Liz Robertson.6 The Canadian Association of Farm Advisors2019-2020 / www.cafanet.ca 7 In times of great volatility, where does one turn to find sanctuary, the calmness that is needed to bring sense and sensibility to the conversation? More and more frequently, farmers are turning to pro- fessionals to help them guide their businesses through the murky and rough waters of the markets, taxation, leadership, wellness, finance, and growth. Undaunted, these profession- als bring their specialized education and experience to the kitchen tables of farms across Canada in order to help farm families achieve their goals and desires and their hopes and dreams. “Improving the Quality of Farm Advice” is not just a tag line, it’s a purpose. CAFA has relentlessly pursued this goal since day one. Never has this been more evident than now. Membership grows every year, new chapters are popping up from coast to coast, and it is not simply because of a tagline. CAFA delivers outstanding educational seminars that drive farm advisors to elevate their own offering, either through advancing their own knowledge or by networking with other advisors whose expertise compliments their own. Last year, the message in this space was “Let it Grow, Let it Grow, Let it Grow.” It is what we in agriculture are in the busi- ness of doing, we grow things! Growth is a constant; it must always be pursued. We’ve all heard the anecdote “think of your business like a tree; what is a tree always doing? It’s growing. If it’s not grow- ing, what is it doing? It’s dying.” True in trees and in business. I believe, however, that we must not limit our view of what is “growth.” • How would we define implementing a new operational strategy that reduces labour intensity, risk of injury, and overhead costs? • How might we categorize reducing the number of acres we cultivate (or the number of head we raise) when doing so increases overall net profit? • How do we view the decision to slow down because it’s in the best mental, emotional, and physical interest of the farmer? In my view, these are all “growth” because growth need not only be “size and scale.” Growth is also improving processes, profit, or wellbeing… and ideally, it’s all three! If you share that lens with me, then it is easy to see growth all around us, everywhere in fact. Agriculture con- tinues to see unprecedented growth despite the headwinds of macro-economics, geo-politics, and Mother Nature. Farmers are taking better control of their agronomy, their marketing, their data, their numbers, their employees, and themselves more than ever before. While it may seem that, during the adverse and volatile times in agriculture, growth is a nice idea but not a realistic pursuit, I challenge that thinking. It is in times of significant difficulty that growth is most often achieved! If you doubt that logic, simply reflect on your most recent period of struggle and consider the hard decisions you made, then how you grew from it. If you don’t look back on where you’ve been, how do you know where you’re going? Yet, if you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know if you got there? With that, I must look back for a moment and offer my sincere and heartfelt thanks to three dedicated, outstanding CAFA members who are retiring from CAFA’s Board of Direc- tors: Chris Corbett, Mike Bossy, and Stan McEwen. All three were not only Directors but were 75 per cent of the Board Executive: Chris as Chair, Mike as Treasurer, and Stan as Secretary. Gentlemen, I will take this liberty to speak on behalf of all CAFA members when I say, “Thank you. You are an example for all CAFA members, and you will be missed at the Board table.” Now to look forward, for it is forward progress that embod- ies growth. Like the farmers we serve, CAFA has survived and thrived through difficult periods in its growth, and like farmers, we will continue to find new ways to grow. Kim Gerencser National Chair Finding New Ways to Grow View from the Chair8 The Canadian Association of Farm Advisors Learn more about the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors and the benefits of membership at www.cafanet.ca.2019-2020 / www.cafanet.ca 9 An October 23, 2019 article, “One country, one agriculture industry” by Toban Dyck in Grainews, caught my attention. Dyck reflects on the Canadian Farm Writers’ annual conference that impressed on him that regardless of the incredible variety of agriculture that we have in Canada, at the end of the day, it is one industry. I liked his comment that “agriculture from the east coast to the west has a lot in common... There is more that binds us together than drives us apart.” How true that is. Think about farm advice. CAFA has members in Prince Edward Island through to British Columbia, po- tatoes to blueberries and everything in between; but as diverse as the farming may be, farm families and farm busi- nesses all have something in common from coast to coast: the need for good, qualified guidance and advice. They all pay Canadian tax, they all feel the pain of broken families, they all need solid contracts, and they all need business advice. That is why CAFA was created in 2001 by Donna Hastings and How- ard Morry as an inter-disciplinary organization. They understood that no one profession has all the train- ing and knowledge to manage the vast array of needs that farm families and businesses have. They figured that it is better to work together to address these complex issues more effectively. All CAFA members have something in common; a vested interest in one sin- gle industry –agriculture. To truly appreciate the value of a CAFA membership, you need to partici- pate in chapter meetings and attend our provincial conferences. If you haven’t been attending, you have been missing out! The collective knowledge is out- standing. The conversations that take place open doors. The speakers have insight to benefit you and your farm clients. A single vested interest and oppor- tunities for collaboration bring CAFA members together. The more you talk about your association, the stronger it gets. This year, we are growing like never before because other farm ad- visors are hearing you talk about CAFA. They are curious why you know all the current info about agriculture. They are curious why you have all the connec- tions/resources. They ask, and you tell them that you are a member of CAFA. We grow. We improve the quality of farm advice. And Canadian farm families and businesses benefit. Aristotle had it right when he said, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Liz Robertson, M.A. Executive Director Executive Director’s Message Something in Common CAFA insiders Edward Turgeon, B.Comm., CFP®, FMA, CIM®; and Richard Bradford, B.Sc., P.Ag., CAFA®, CFP® LifeLegacy Wealth Management Inc. Richard Bradford is a member of CAFA, a Professional Agrologist and a Certified Financial Planner professional. Edward Turgeon is a Certified Financial Planner professional and a Chartered Investment Manager. Delores Moskal, CAFA®, CFP®, RRC® Self-employed Delores Moskal is a Certified Financial Planner, Registered Retirement Consultant and Certified Agricultural Farm Advisor in Saskatchewan. She writes a blog called, “Money Matters and So Do You Dreams” at www.deloresmoskal.com. Jeff Deagle Miller Thomson LLP Jeff Deagle is an associate for Family Law at Miller Thomson LLP. His practice includes advising clients in all aspects of their separation including wills, estate planning, real estate, property division, support and custody. Angela De Groot, BA (Hons Spec), MBA, FEA, CAFA® Synergize Family Business Consulting Angela De Groot is the founder and president of a growing agricultural operation based in Ontario and Manitoba, which produces pork and poultry, and which recently celebrated its 20th year in business. She is also a Principal Consultant with Synergize Family Business Consulting. For more information, visit synergizefbc.ca.Next >