Applications for Ohio Farm Bureau Health Plans now available
Members have three ways to apply: contacting a certified agent, calling 833-468-4280 or visiting ohiofarmbureauhealthplans.org.
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Nationwide’s Land As Your Legacy program has dedicated, experienced agents who are specifically trained at helping families transition farm businesses to the next generation.
Eric Brown, a Nationwide agent specializing in Land As Your Legacy and a Farm Bureau member from Huron County, is an expert in the process, including some of the challenges he helps guide families through every day.
“Everyone thinks that money is the No. 1, most prevalent issue,” Brown said. “They think money is the issue, property is the issue, equipment is the issue, but the No. 1 issue has always been a people issue.”
Families are all different, he said. Personalities can clash and long-held grievances can become large elephants in the room, especially when making plans for the future of the family farm takes center stage.
“It comes down to communication,” he said. “In the cases I’ve seen fall apart, the damage has been done because of a complete lack of communication. The longer that goes on, the more it will grow and fester and all of a sudden it’s this big deal.”
One particular family’s case comes to mind for Brown. The Ohio family is trying to plan for the future of a 2,000-acre crop farm. The parents are in their late 60s and there are several children, only a few of whom farm. Things are so strained among the siblings that three of them no longer gather to celebrate key family holidays.
Sadly, Brown said, this is not an isolated issue. He sees it all the time. His clients also struggle with a lack of leadership within the family.
“Mom and Dad don’t want to upset the kids, but the more definitive Mom and Dad can be (about decisions) the better off everyone is,” he said.
Another challenge is the transfer of business power from one generation to the next.
“Agriculture has become so complex, so sophisticated, so dynamic that the skills Mom and Dad have today aren’t the skills needed to keep the farm operational for the next 20-30 years,” Brown said, noting that there is a flipside to that as well.
“The kids have never had to have their own money at risk,” Brown said. “Some passing of responsibility has got to take place while Mom and Dad are still around to teach them how to run the farm.”
Five key elements make up the Land as Your Legacy program: succession planning, business planning, risk management, financial independence and estate planning services. Land As Your Legacy agents can help families navigate all of them.
Brown said he has done everything from being the objective third party at a family meeting to going with farmers to meet with their attorneys and “speak lawyer,” to help them understand the complicated legalities.
“I know the blood, sweat and tears that go into getting a farm where it is today,” said Brown, who operates a 1,000-acre grain farm himself. “Why on earth would you leave (its legacy) to chance?”
If you’re ready to start the discussion about transition planning, contact a Land As Your Legacy adviser at 1-844-654-5266 or [email protected].
My first recommendation in your journey is to start out with a local farming friend or mentor along with joining an organization like Ohio Farm Bureau.
We’re just so thankful for the Farm Bureau and the foundation for helping put this together. And of course, the Boyert family for the vision they had with this grant. It’s jumping us forward 10 years. It’s unbelievable.
I could not have done it without the resources I have found through Farm Bureau.
It wasn’t until I joined the Wilmington College Collegiate Farm Bureau that I truly saw how my passion could translate into leadership, advocacy and a career.
The issue of property taxation remains as one of the biggest challenges our members face today. Ensuring agricultural property is valued for its agricultural potential and not development is critical to the continued success of Ohio agriculture.
Through the Select Partner program, we became educated in farm insurance and weren't just selling policies. It became more and more clear why farmers need an advocate like Ohio Farm Bureau.
So many of the issues that OFBF and its members are advocating for are important to all Ohioans. I look at OFBF as an agricultural watchdog advocating for farmers and rural communities across Ohio.
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