One of the unique things about agriculture is that most ag producers are also their own chief financial officer.  As agriculture becomes more and more complex, farm and ranch managers need to understand and communicate in the financial world.  The Center for Farm Financial Management has created a new online workshop series to help ag producers (and anyone who works with them) understand and use common financial statements and measures.  Our new Web site, Interpreting Financial Statements and Measures (IFSaM), is intended to teach producers the basics of interpreting the four major financial statements and the 21 financial measures recommended by the Farm Financial Standards Council.

IFSaM is a series of online videos that producers can work through at their own pace.  Each session provides benchmarks, based on actual farms, that producers can use to evaluate their own financial position and their financial performance.  Case farm examples are used to bring the data to life.  There are also optional “test your knowledge” quizzes at the end of each session.  In total, there is over 2 ½ hours of information.

Best of all, it’s free.  This series was created with funding from the North Central Risk Management Education Center.