Looking at a Dairy Producer’s World From Their Perspective

Kernaleguen Dairy Barn

 

There is a saying, “You can’t really understand another person’s experience until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes.” I would like to add that if you can’t walk in their shoes having them tell you is the next best thing.  As part of the AG Advisors Forum in Melfort, Saskatchewan last week, attendees had the privilege of touring the Kernaleguen Dairy Barn and later in the afternoon listening to Brenda Kernaleguen enlighten her audience about the expectations they have from their advisors. Brenda graciously granted permission to have her presentation shared on this blog website.  Her presentation was insightful, sincere, and honest. Above all, her presentation is worth sharing with advisors who deal with the clients in their respective farming communities.  Listen in; I am sure you will agree.

 

 

Good afternoon everyone,

 

My son Paul and I were just discussing the fact that despite our farm’s upgraded technology, we are still having a major battle with mastitis in our main herd. Our somatic cell count is verging on violation, so it is imperative that we isolate the source of the problem, looking at inflation cleanliness, the number of collect cows and their periods of absence, recipe formulas that may contribute to possible acidosis (resulting in inverted protein/butterfat ratios) and the moisture content of the various silages, checking whether any components such as DDGs, Jumpstart, or Energizer have been incorrectly calculated or missed altogether in the ration.

 

Now, who can tell me what I just said?

 

The first important point to keep in mind when you are dealing with farmers is that farming is no longer the fall-back position of kids or adults who are lacking either the energy, desire, or intellect to pursue post-secondary education or a career in a more challenging field. Farming has, in fact, become a science demanding a high degree of continuing education and effort in order to be successful. As experts in our field, we have a language that accompanies our work, just as you do in your field. In order for farmers and accountants or bankers to communicate, therefore, we must be respectful of one another’s expertise while trying to find a common language through which to communicate with one another. You explain things to us in layman’s language and we will try to do the same. Please do not try to wow us with fancy terms and statistics and we promise to refrain from identifying you with either parts of our cow’s anatomy or the substance that is regularly expelled from that anatomy.

 

Rule #1, then, is “No bullshit from either side!”

 

A second helpful exercise for anyone dealing with a farming operation is to try and gather as much information about the individual members of the business/family as possible.

 

Who has what education?

Who does the work?

 

What work is being done?

Who is a visionary? Who is not?

Who is technologically savvy? Who is not?

How is debt perceived by each of the individuals?

What regard is given by each person to family dynamics such as safety, vacations, recreational activities, homes and yards.

 

Believe me when I say that multimillion dollar family farming operations can dissolve over such seemingly trivial things as dog food, TV antennas, grass mowing, or egg money – to name but a few.

 

You see, as much as one person (or perhaps several family members) might like to castrate Uncle Bob and send cousin Sally to Hinterland, family business operations do not lend themselves to such easy solutions. An astute accountant or banker would hopefully be able to delineate the generational differences in regard to technology, encouraging the older generation to recognize the efficiency and statistical value of computerized data, while keeping a check on the younger generation’s casual lack of regard for debt and its consequences. As my son so often points out, “If your farm is not moving forward, it is already dying.” So try to respect Grandpa’s legacy of hard work, without ignoring the present generation’s desire to improve and expand. Always be aware of personalities who simply want to posture for attention’s sake, or because they have finally found an arena over which to exert control. One stubborn family personality can often stall a farm to death, so it would be very helpful if you, as the “professionals,” could outline in specific terms what the ramifications of killing a family business will look like, and how it will affect the person in question. Few people survive a sinking ship, and if they do, they have irreparable damage to deal with in the end.

 

Point #2 then, is “Find out who you are dealing with, and deal with them!”

 

A third and extremely helpful tactic in dealing with family farm businesses is to come to the negotiating table with as much help as you have time and brains to uncover. There is money out there. There are possible profit-producing programs available. Are the hard-working family employees aware of these possibilities – not always, and I would venture to guess, not even often. They don’t have time to read all the brochures; they are simply too busy. You will win for yourselves undying loyalty and support from farm members whose business difficulties can be resolved by your knowledge of a possible solution.

 

For instance, a farm’s crippling water bills (as is the case for many dairies) might be eliminated, or at least diminished, with a reasonable bank loan and a matching government grant through the Growing Forward program that would enable the possible drilling of a well, or the laying of a pipeline to a more economically sustainable water source. Or, you might reduce the personal tax of a farming family member just by suggesting he or she keeps a log for trips made in the family vehicle for farm business. A percentage of those trips can be deducted.

 

Perhaps you could make a point of outlining the advantages of incorporation versus operating in a partnership. Twenty years ago, my husband and I went looking for a different tax arrangement for our farm, when we had too few kids to bring in any child allowance money, and not enough depreciation to offset our tax bill. We paid $28,000 that year to the government – the salary of a hired hand my husband pointed out – but it simply went into the hands of the government of the day, never to be seen again! Incorporation soon followed.

 

And speaking of incorporation – try to inform families just what can and cannot be legitimately claimed as corporate expenses. List them, even. Knowing takes the guesswork out of doing the books, and puts all families involved on the same page.

 

If succession planning is your forte, then be as creative as is humanly possible. Insurance payouts for the non-farming sons and/or daughters is not always the most reasonable or affordable solution -- although it might be, if RRSPs can be used to fund the insurance payments. Exploring the assigning of differing types of shares might be an option; assigning off-farm assets such as real estate or other valuables may also offer interesting options. Whatever you do, please try to refrain from the familiar mantra of days gone by, “Let’s make our decisions with just the siblings and no spouses.” Hello! Each family member willingly chose that spouse and like it or not, they have to sleep in the bed they made. Those spouses often made major sacrifices to become a part of that particular family business operation and for that reason alone, they deserve a voice at the table. Will it be complicated? Yes. Will it be messy? Probably. But the mess and the complications are going to happen anyway, and it will simply destroy families behind closed doors, if those members are not allowed at the table. Your best chance at a solution is to have every member present – bring a sword and a shield if necessary.

 

After this lengthy explanation, then, point #3 echoes the trusty Boy Scouts – “Come prepared.”

Lastly, let me read you my Christmas letter from 2015.

 

 

T'was 5 days before Christmas
And all through the barn,
Disaster was lurking
Starting with a 4 AM alarm.

The robot was calling,
Air pressure was low;
Out into the winter
Trudged sleepy-eyed Joe.

A crack in the compressor
No glue could set right, 
So off headed Brenda --
in to the dark night.

A part was secured 
From the Dairyland store, 
Only to discover that
Of disasters - there were more!

The scale on the mixer
Simply gave up the ghost - 
All our measured out rations
Would be nothing but "toast."

And just when we thought
It couldn't possibly get worse, 
The milk started heating --
Would Joe break down and curse?

No, such is our life 
On a robotic dairy;
We win some, we lose some,
Some days are plain "hairy."

But thankful we are 
For the work and the wonder
Of caring for cows
And putting right what's asunder.

Work is our play;
It keeps us at home - 
But when happiness abounds
Who needs to roam?

Wishing you and yours a Dairy Christmas and a Happy Moo Year!

 

 

The response to my Christmas letter was varied. Some friends thought I’d made up the circumstances just to generate a seasonal laugh. Others hoped that next year would be better. When I explained that all of these events had indeed happened in just one day, five days before Christmas, and I had not fabricated a single detail, every friend registered a note of alarm.

 

The truth of farming is that it never ends. You take the farm’s problems with you to bed at night and they are still there in the morning, no matter how strong the breakfast coffee. Vacations are few and far between, if they happen at all! Meals and, in fact, most events that other families would call “ordinary” are often unpredictable and inopportune, as is the weather and the mates your children choose to marry!  I have a set of tea cozies, (those fabric tents you pull over a teapot to keep it toasty) that I regularly tug over dishes of hot food to keep our meal warm while we tend to a robot that’s stopped, or a calf that’s fallen in the gutter, or a bovine birth that’s rapidly going wrong. Supper is still edible at 11:30 pm - not an unusual occurrence on our farm!  

 

I remember barely sliding into church one Sunday when the power had flashed off at 5:30 am and had stayed off for two hours. We were still milking in the parlour at the time (this was prior to our robot installation) and a fellow teacher friend had commented on how he’d missed his hot coffee that morning.

“Hey, how’s does a power outage affect you guys?” he queried.

“Well,” I explained, “when the power stops, all 24 milking claws drop to the cement and we have to race up and down the parlour to pull them out from under the cows before they get stepped or crapped on. The head-gates holding the animals in their milking positions lock in place and all the fans go off, as well as the lights. So now we have to contend with 24 hot, increasingly agitated cows mooing in the dark, along with the rest of the sweaty herd confined in the holding area behind them. We do have a generator to run the parlour, but it means driving a tractor to the replacement power source, hooking up the PTO, and restarting all of the equipment from the compressor to the bulk tank to the parlour itself.”

With a rather stunned expression on his face, my colleague managed to stammer, “I will never look at a power outage in the same way again.” And he wandered away.

 

My fourth and last point is this, “Yes, “shit happens,” most often and most profoundly on a farm.

 

Please be empathetic. Whether it means rescheduling a meeting, driving to the farm rather than meeting in your office or skyping a clan gathered around the supper table at nine pm, a farming family will certainly appreciate your understanding support.

 

Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you this afternoon. I hope I have enlightened you somewhat in the fine art of dealing with farming families as businesses. Remember these 4 points:

 

1.     Speak to be understood – no bullshit from either side.

2.     Find out who you are dealing with – and deal with them.

3.     Come prepared. Even better, come with creative and problem-solving suggestions.

4.     Expect the unexpected at the most inopportune times and be as helpful as you can.

 

Other than that, as a dairy farmer, I implore you to vote “no” to the TPP if you have the chance, eat as much cheese as your bowels will allow you, drink milk and smile at dairy people every chance you get. They may only be half awake but they’ll appreciate the warmth of your attention! Thank you.