Accounting and Payroll Articles & Guides

Published: 03/02/2023

H-2A reporting is critical for agricultural payroll as it helps ensure that all legal requirements related to wages and benefits for H-2A employees are met before any payments are made by employers under this program. Proper reporting can also help protect against potential abuses by ensuring that all required taxes and contributions from employee earnings, such as Social Security taxes (FICA) and Medicare deductions, have been correctly calculated and withheld from employee paydays before payments are issued.

Published: 12/21/2022

As another year winds to a close, many businesses are already engaged in the end-of-year planning process. Whether that’s tallying up the previous year’s successes, or looking for ways to improve the running of their business in the new year, it’s a valuable period of strategizing that shouldn’t be missed.

Published: 10/02/2020

No industry has escaped the COVID-19 pandemic crisis unaffected, and agriculture is no exception.

Published: 07/20/2020

These six steps to better farm bookkeeping can make a big difference in your farm’s bookkeeping, which in turn can help your farm grow more profitable.

Published: 03/17/2020

A balance sheet is an indispensable tool for any business, and today’s farms are no exception. In many ways, a balance sheet is more helpful for understanding the financial health of your farm than your profit or loss at any given moment.

Published: 09/12/2019

Is the most basic tool always the best one for your farming operation? Do you just choose the cheapest option, when purchasing equipment for your farm, or do you research various models before you buy? Do you like a certain brand or type of equipment?

Published: 04/22/2019

Learn more about the importance of tracking farm expenses, and how to get started with it.

Published: 04/22/2019

All farmers have faced problems with accounting over the life of their farming operation. How big or small those problems are, likely depend on the time you put in trying to manage them.

Published: 01/17/2019

Managing the accounting is a crucial function that needs attention, but should not take away from the farmer’s main job. That is why it’s so important to have a suitable accounting system that is easy to use and helps gain control of finances.

Published: 08/04/2017

For many of us, just the thought of financial records, budgets or tax returns, gives a chill up our spine. But the truth is, a lack of proper financial management within an operation can lead to un-informed decision making, and your bottom line can take a real hit.

Published: 07/28/2017

Agriculture, by definition, is an industry, science, or practice, in which animals and/or crops are raised, for the purpose of providing food. Agriculture as an industry encompasses farmers themselves: the people who work in the field of agriculture.

Published: 06/30/2017

Creating a budget for your farming operation may seem like a daunting task at first, but farm budgets can make a big difference in the profitability of farming operations. You can choose to create a budget by hand, by using a spreadsheet, or you can use your farm software to help you. Either way, the outcome remains the same: increased confidence in decision making and increased profits for your farm.

Published: 06/23/2017

When it comes to tools to help a farmer manage an operation, is the most basic and widespread option always the best? Just think about your equipment, the tools you use out in the field. Do you buy whatever is cheapest, or do you like a certain brand or type of equipment? Do you buy the first thing you see, or research everything that is available first? The same logic applies to your software. The software you use is a crucial piece of equipment that can help you stay on track and be profitable. Don’t trust it to whatever is easiest to find or cheapest! Instead, have a careful look at your options and what fits best for your farm. At least then if you decide to purchase the cheapest and most basic package, you will do so with your eyes wide open, and you will know exactly what you are getting. So a good question here is, with so many basic software packages available, who needs software for agriculture?

Published: 06/21/2017

See how the concepts used during the Depression can help you use your farm accounting software to bring in more money, or keep the money you already have!

Published: 07/21/2011

This worksheet can be used as a guide to help your organization find the best accounting software application for you. Consider each field of information and fill in the appropriate answer for your needs. Send this check list to ag accounting software vendors you are interested in, or simply use it as a guideline when talking to vendors.

Published: 04/19/2011

This free white paper was written for producers who are just beginning the process of computerizing farm records or for those wanting to upgrade current systems for better access to important management information. It covers needs analysis, software considerations, how to test the software against your needs, questions to ask vendors, and a comprehensive list of terms everyone should know.

Published: 04/19/2011

This free, 16-page booklet was a joint effort by the Penn State Dairy Alliance and Red Wing Software to provide progressive dairies with basic accounting principles and practices to follow. It covers six steps for efficient information management and outllines a recommended, dairy specific chart of accounts.