Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program

Farm Credit Awards $26,000 to 11 Northeast Farm Programs

The Northeast Farm Credit associations and CoBank recently awarded a total of $26,000 to 11 organizations as part of the Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program. The grants help recipients carry out programs that promote Northeast agriculture, support youth programs, and generate a greater understanding of the Northeast’s vital agricultural, commercial fishing, and forest products industries among the nonfarm public.

The program is a shared effort of First Pioneer Farm Credit, Farm Credit of Western New York, Yankee Farm Credit, Farm Credit of Maine, and CoBank. Individual awards are granted in April, August, and December each year.

Since its inception in 1996, the Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program has awarded more than $984,365 to 352 grant recipients. In 2009, the four Northeast Farm Credit associations and CoBank will reach their $1 million milestone in grants that they have awarded to hundreds of organizations over the past 13 years … an impressive landmark for Northeast agriculture and Farm Credit.

Recent Grant Recipients:

Cornell Dairy Fellows Program will use this $5,000 grant to provide an in-depth understanding of the dairy industry for its current class of Fellows. Cornell Dairy Fellows is a comprehensive undergraduate program that is nationally recognized as one of the best training opportunities for students considering careers in the dairy industry.

New Jersey Agricultural Society’s $5,000 grant will support the New Jersey Agricultural Leadership Development Program. This two-year program offers a solid foundation of skills and experiences to help young farmers and agribusiness professionals become productive organizational and community leaders.

Northeast Cooperative Council will apply its $5,000 grant to the 2009 Future Cooperative Leaders Conference. The conference provides a valuable opportunity for future cooperative leaders to learn more about the unique operating features and issues facing their cooperatives.

Allegany-Steuben Holstein Club, Inc.’s $2,500 grant will fund the Junior Convention portion of the 2009 New York State All-Breed Convention. The convention will be held in Corning, N.Y.

Harvest New England is the cooperative marketing program of New England’s state departments of agriculture. This $2,000 grant supports the 2009 Agricultural Marketing Conference and Trade Show, a three-day event covering valuable skills to help Harvest New England members increase their direct sales to consumers and the viability of New England agriculture.

Connecticut Farm Bureau Association will use its $1,500 grant to update and distribute information on Connecticut’s Public Act 490, a law that allows Connecticut farms, forests, and open space land to be assessed at its use value.

Granite State Dairy Promotion will use its $1,000 grant to market locally produced cheese products developed by the New Hampshire Cheesemakers Guild.

New York Holstein Association will apply its $1,000 grant to support cattle judging contests for youth at the New York Spring Dairy Carousel. This event is scheduled for April 2009.

New Jersey Junior Breeders Fund Inc. will use this $1,000 grant to run its 2009 Junior Breeder/Young Farmer Symposium, an annual day-long opportunity for attendees to focus on agricultural careers through discussions, presentations, and hands-on sessions.

Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA) of Vermont will apply its $1,000 grant to NOFA Vermont’s 28th Annual Winter Conference, a two-day conference in February that offers more than 60 workshops for organic famers and gardeners.

Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA) of New York will apply its $1,000 grant to its annual NOFA-NY Winter Conference. A full agenda of dynamic keynote speakers, 70 exhibitors, and dozens of educational exhibits will attract organic farmers and gardeners to Rochester in January.

Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program

Created: 1996
Total grant dollars since 1996: $984,356
Total projects supported: 352
Proposal submission dates: April 1, August 1, December 1
Contact: Robert A. Smith, First Pioneer Farm Credit, 2668 State Route 7, Suite 21, Cobleskill, New York 12043
Phone: 518.296.8188
E-mail: AgEnhancement@FarmCreditWNY.com

Introducing Tina Reynolds

We are pleased to announce Tina Reynolds as our newest employee in the White River Jct. Office. Tina is a Financial Services Representative, involved in our records and tax department. Tina came to us from Summit Wealth Group in White River Jct. where she worked as an administrative assistant and tax preparer. She is also close to completing the process to becoming an Enrolled Agent with the IRS. Stop in and say "Hi" to Tina when you're in the area.

Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year is January 26 this year. This is the biggest holiday of the year for about one quarter of the world's population. Click here for more information about Chinese New Year traditions and celebrations.

Each Chinese year is named for one of 12 animals. This will be the Year of the Ox, the second of the 12 animals. According to one legend, the Emperor asked all the animals to a race. Only 12 animals showed up. The ox would have won except that he let the rat ride on his head, and just as the ox approached the finish line the rat jumped off in front and beat him. Click here for more information about the Chinese Zodiac.

Best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!

Exciting News for Beginning Farmers in NH!

Last week Yankee Farm Credit entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Farm Service Agency (FSA) and the New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food concerning beginning farmers.

The MOU allows Yankee to make FSA guaranteed loans to qualified beginning farmers without having to charge the borrower the usual 1% FSA guarantee fee. FSA will waive the fee. This will allow these beginning farmers to keep more of their cash on the farm. A beginning farmer is a farmer who has been farming for less than 10 years.

Please pass the word! For more information please contact your local office or click here to send an e-mail.

Click here for the New Hampshire Department of Agriculture news release. First Pioneer Farm Credit was also a party to the MOU in New Hampshire.

The MOU with New Hampshire is similar to the MOU that Yankee signed with Vermont last November (see this post). Yankee closed one loan under the Vermont MOU in 2008 and two more so far in 2009.

UPDATE 2/20/09: FSA in New Hampshire has advised us that they have rescinded this MOU. They have concluded that this type of MOU "needs to be with the State, and the State needs to be doing the financing." This would preclude this type of MOU with any third party such as Farm Credit. We are not sure what this means for the MOU in Vermont. I will post updates on the blog as I learn additional information.

Vermont Agricultural Mediation Program

Matt Strassberg of the Vermont Agricultural Mediation Program made a presentation at the Dairy Status Meeting on January 16th.

The Vermont Agricultural Mediation Program (VTAMP) is the USDA Certified State Agricultural Mediation Program for Vermont, and as such it is funded by the USDA. VTAMP is administered by the Environmental Mediation Center in Moretown.

VTAMP started in the summer of 2007 and worked on 33 disputes in its first fiscal year. None of those involved Yankee Farm Credit, but credit issues are a common reason for mediation. Other issues include government permitting and enforcement actions, including environmental issues; disputes with neighbors or suppliers; family farm transfers; and other areas of conflict. Mediation is offered free to the agricultural community.

For more information, see the VTAMP web site.

UPDATE 2/13/09: New York also has a USDA Certified State Agricultural Mediation Program. See the NYSAMP web site.

UPDATE 2/14/09: This article has good background information about the USDA Certified State Agricultural Mediation Program.

UPDATE 2/05/15: New Hampshire also has a USDA Certified State Agricultural Mediation Program. It is also administered by the Environmental Mediation Center in Moretown, VT. I believe this has been in place since 2010. For more information, see the NHAMP web site.

Vermont Telecommunications Authority

Jerry Johnson of the Vermont Telecommunications Authority made a presentation at the Dairy Status Meeting on January 16th. Read on for why farmers may be interested in this.

The Vermont Telecommunications Authority (VTA or VT Telecom) was created by the Legislature in 2007. Its goal is: "To insure that every corner of the State has access to the Internet at high speed, mobile data and the cellular phone network by the end of 2010."

With current technology, high-speed Internet access can be obtained through the cellular phone network. The VTA has proposed bringing 100% cellular phone coverage to Vermont via the construction of 200 hybrid towers that combine an antenna for the cellular phone network with a small wind turbine.

Farmers may own sites that would be desirable for some of these 200 towers. Benefits might include a small payment to the farmer as well as excellent cellular phone coverage with high-speed Internet access. The VTA believes that towers can be built at no cost to the landowner.

Recent press articles about this initiative:

A novel plan for cell service, Rutland Herald 1/14/09
Hybrid towers on telecom horizon, Burlington Free Press 1/17/09

For more information, see the VTA web site.

UPDATE: Click here (3 MB PDF file) for a map from the VTA web site showing areas of the state lacking broadband coverage. Thanks to Dr. DeWitt for the link.

Dairy Status Meeting

Farm milk prices are falling. Agri-Mark's latest forecast is for an average price of $13.65 for 2009 with prices below $12 for a couple of months in the spring. This compares to an average price of $19.85 in 2007 and $18.62 in 2008. (Prices are the Boston statistical uniform price (SUP) for the calendar year.)

Low milk prices will be slightly mitigated by MILC payments which Agri-Mark estimates will average $1.07 in 2009. On the other hand, input costs remain higher than in 2007, although they have recently moderated slightly from their 2008 highs.

Roger Allbee, Secretary of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, convened a Dairy Status Meeting on January 16th for the purpose of sharing information about the current situation. (WCAX coverage.) Attendees heard from a variety of sources including farmers, dairy co-ops, feed and fertilizer dealers, bankers and others. I mentioned our recent letter to members and our Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with FSA and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture regarding beginning farmers.

There were presentations about two initiatives that I had not previously heard about. I have written a blog post about each, in case you are interested:

Vermont Telecommunications Authority
Vermont Agricultural Mediation Program

UPDATE 1/28/09: The Vermont Agency of Agriculture has posted online several of the presentations made at the Dairy Status Meeting on January 16th: click here.

UPDATE 1/31/09: A follow-up meeting was held on January 29th. SVP/Chief Credit Officer Bill Heath represented Yankee, as I was unable to attend. Today's Burlington Free Press has an article about the meeting: Milk prices crash.

Prepare to Survive a Bio-disaster

Dr. Julie Smith of UVM Extension is presently conducting a series of workshops titled "Prepare to Survive a Bio-disaster." (See also this earlier post.)

Workshop I was held in November. Workshop II was held last week. Workshop III will be held in February. Each workshop is held in three locations in Vermont: Addison county, Franklin county and Orleans county.

Workshop II dealt with personal and financial resiliency. Yankee Farm Credit made a presentation on the lender's perspective. Our message was that lenders will try to work with affected borrowers to the extent possible. Our presentation included a general discussion of how we make credit decisions and the following suggestions: prepare during the good times by building financial strength and liquidity; keep in mind that your lender will be involved in any discussions affecting collateral, including indemnity payments; maintain good communications with your lender.

SVP/Chief Credit Officer Bill Heath made the presentation in Orleans county; VP Mike Farmer made the presentation in Franklin county; and I made the presentation in Addison county.

UPDATE: Dr. Julie Smith has posted follow-up documentation from this series of workshops: results, feedback.

Tax Tips newsletter

Our December issue of Tax Tips newsletter was mailed this week. This newsletter is sent to current tax and records clients, if you would like to be added to the mailing list for future editions please contact your local office. We anticipate sending this out quarterly. Below is an excerpt from the newsletter, to read the whole thing click here.

Year End Tax Notes and Reminders by Suzie Wheeler, EA - Tax Specialist

With a new year approaching, it’s time to start planning for preparation of your 2008 federal and state income tax returns. In early January, existing tax clients will be receiving the annual Yankee Farm Credit mailings. Please note that the Annual Enrollment Form has changed this year due to new IRS disclosure requirements. Although the remaining forms may appear identical from year to year, please take a moment to read the cover letter and complete the organizer. Congress passed new tax legislation four times in 2008 (even more than a typical year), and we at Yankee want to be able to maximize your available tax deductions and see that you claim all credits coming to you.
There are many changes that can occur from one year to the next which we need to be aware of when preparing your returns – dependency changes, capital asset sales and purchases, new businesses, to name a few. In addition to your returns, Yankee is willing to assist your children in the preparation of their returns. As a reminder, for preparation of the Vermont forms, we need to know the income of all residents in the household, whether claimed as a dependent or not.

For further assistance, please feel free to call a Financial Services Representative at your local office.

Interest Rates

The following letter is being mailed to members with the next monthly billing statement:

January 9, 2009

Dear Member,

I wrote to you last fall about the current problems in the financial markets. [see here and here] Credit markets are not yet back to normal, but the situation has improved. I want to assure you that the Farm Credit System has plenty of money available to lend. The Farm Credit System as a whole is sound, and Yankee Farm Credit in particular is sound. We continued to do business as usual all through the worst of the financial crisis last fall, and we are still doing business as usual today.

Today I am pleased to write that Yankee decreased its variable interest rates to members by 0.75% effective January 1. This was in response to a 0.75% decrease in the commercial bank prime interest rate following action by the Federal Reserve on December 16. Our variable interest rates are presently the lowest in the history of Yankee (which was formed in 1995). Indeed, I have searched the historical files, and I cannot find a time when Farm Credit’s average variable interest rate to members was lower than it is today, not even in the 1930s.

Let’s hope that we are not about to repeat the 1930s. We know, however, that many of you are facing difficult financial times. Economic conditions in the two main industries that we serve, dairy and timber, are poor. Dairy is likely entering its worst year since 2006, which was the worst year in at least the last 30 years. The timber industry has been suffering for several years along with the housing industry, with no recovery in sight.

If your business is facing financial difficulties, please give us a call to see if we can help. We may be able to consider a variety of options, including additional funds, reamortizations or principal deferments. Each customer is unique, so please call your loan officer to discuss what might be appropriate for your situation.

We understand that balance sheets may temporarily deteriorate during downturns. This is regrettable, but a strong business will bounce back when better economic conditions return. We’ll be here in the good times, too—to help you reach your financial goals, which may include rebuilding equity, enhancing liquidity, improving profitability and growing your business.

Best wishes for 2009, and thank you for your continued support and patronage.

Sincerely,

George S. Putnam
President and CEO

Northeast Kingdom Dairy Farmers Meetings

The Northeast Kingdom Dairy Farmers Group invites you to join them for discussions about some of the most difficult challenges on the dairy farm today. Attendance is free. Refreshments will be offered at each meeting. For more information see the upcoming newsletters or contact Kelly Langmaid at 802-334-8050 to RSVP.

Introducing Alicia Kinney

Alicia began working for Yankee on December 15th as an Office Assistant in the St. Albans office. Alicia grew up on her family's dairy in Berkshire and was most recently employed as a receptionist for a local fuel company. She graduated from Richford High School and is currently enrolled in the Community College of Vermont.

Please join us in welcoming Alicia!