Not real sure how to, but I have a plan

dbelles

Newbie
Messages
7
Likes
0
First a bit about myself, I have lived and worked on a farm here in Kansas most of my life. With the recent economic collapse we in agriculture are actually having a boom right now. Where I live we have the fortune to have some of the worlds most fertile ground, not to mention that the United States has the best most modern equipment, and support facilities, which makes agriculture a great business to be a part of in America.

Look I am sure of a couple things in life, the sun will rise tomorrow, more jobs will be shipped over seas, more money will flow out of the economy in the United States than will flow in, and entire industries will likely not survive the next 10 years here. As the world popullation continues to explode commodities will continue to sky rocket, so all of this means that ag is the sector to watch over the next several decades (look what commodity prices are doing right now).

What I am purposing or thinking about doing is forming a corporation, with the farm my family has already in place in the corporation and using this as a base for stock value. Then the next step would be to find people to buy into the farm to bring in new money for a more rapid expansion. So rather than buying stock in some company that may or may not be worth anything, the money invested would lead to the company buying more land, planting more crops, and then paying out a rate of return every year ( my idea is simply whatever percent of shares your investment gets you dictates what percent of year end profits investors recieve). The corporation would own the ground, equipment, and even the harvest. Thus the money invested would lead to a return in the form of land and equipment ownership, and crops. . .real assets with a value that will only increase.

Now to really makes this work on a large scale is that I have a theory that I have developed over the years, high mobility no-till. It is a hybrid form of farming that means 4 people with proper equipment and proper planning could farm and harvest over 40,000 acres of crop land a year. That would mean an average of roughly 1,800,000 bushels of wheat every year around 4,000,000 bushels of corn depending on crop cycles of coarse (the cycle of crops grown has a huge effect on the system to maximize production). The geographical make up of the Midwestern United States is also part of what makes this possible due to the planting and harvest cycles. I would love to talk with anyone interested more about this idea, and the specifics of how it could work.

I don't know how to find interested people or if the plan even sounds like anything that people would be interested in, but I thought I might post it here and see what people think. In the end to me it seems that it would make more sense than to keep buying stock with no garunteed return every year and no hard asset value to speak of? Thank you for your time and any comments.
 
I would be concerned about any legal and tax advice I received in an open forum. I would also be careful not to violate SEC rules about soliciting an offer.

Consider me paranoid.
 
First a bit about myself, I have lived and worked on a farm here in Kansas most of my life. With the recent economic collapse we in agriculture are actually having a boom right now. Where I live we have the fortune to have some of the worlds most fertile ground, not to mention that the United States has the best most modern equipment, and support facilities, which makes agriculture a great business to be a part of in America.

Look I am sure of a couple things in life, the sun will rise tomorrow, more jobs will be shipped over seas, more money will flow out of the economy in the United States than will flow in, and entire industries will likely not survive the next 10 years here. As the world popullation continues to explode commodities will continue to sky rocket, so all of this means that ag is the sector to watch over the next several decades (look what commodity prices are doing right now).

What I am purposing or thinking about doing is forming a corporation, with the farm my family has already in place in the corporation and using this as a base for stock value. Then the next step would be to find people to buy into the farm to bring in new money for a more rapid expansion. So rather than buying stock in some company that may or may not be worth anything, the money invested would lead to the company buying more land, planting more crops, and then paying out a rate of return every year ( my idea is simply whatever percent of shares your investment gets you dictates what percent of year end profits investors recieve). The corporation would own the ground, equipment, and even the harvest. Thus the money invested would lead to a return in the form of land and equipment ownership, and crops. . .real assets with a value that will only increase.

Now to really makes this work on a large scale is that I have a theory that I have developed over the years, high mobility no-till. It is a hybrid form of farming that means 4 people with proper equipment and proper planning could farm and harvest over 40,000 acres of crop land a year. That would mean an average of roughly 1,800,000 bushels of wheat every year around 4,000,000 bushels of corn depending on crop cycles of coarse (the cycle of crops grown has a huge effect on the system to maximize production). The geographical make up of the Midwestern United States is also part of what makes this possible due to the planting and harvest cycles. I would love to talk with anyone interested more about this idea, and the specifics of how it could work.

I don't know how to find interested people or if the plan even sounds like anything that people would be interested in, but I thought I might post it here and see what people think. In the end to me it seems that it would make more sense than to keep buying stock with no garunteed return every year and no hard asset value to speak of? Thank you for your time and any comments.

Be careful with the internet. Once it is known who and where you are you will be open to all kinds of telephone offers, etc. as you, probably, have valuable assets, already.

To get an idea of how easy it is to be duped read the "Boiler room scams" section of this site. You may think that it will not happen to you---that's what they thought.
 
Be careful with the internet. Once it is known who and where you are you will be open to all kinds of telephone offers, etc. as you, probably, have valuable assets, already.

To get an idea of how easy it is to be duped read the "Boiler room scams" section of this site. You may think that it will not happen to you---that's what they thought.

Don't get me wrong, I am not looking to find an internet investor, no way am I going that route. I just wanted to float the basic concept without any details to see what people thought.
 
Don't get me wrong, I am not looking to find an internet investor, no way am I going that route. I just wanted to float the basic concept without any details to see what people thought.

The SEC does not care about your intent. If your actions result in investors who found out about your investment over the internet, you could be in serious trouble.

You best route is a competent tax lawyer.
 
I would be concerned about any legal and tax advice I received in an open forum. I would also be careful not to violate SEC rules about soliciting an offer.

Consider me paranoid.

I am just floating the basic idea, no details no offers. As for legal, there are countless corporate farms in the US, people use them so that they can pass on the family farm in small non-taxable shares every year so that they can't get nailed with the death tax in the end. Trust me the farm hasn't survived since the 1860's without knowing the tax laws. Basically I am just trying to understand if it would be a viable option that would bring in capital to allow more rapid expansion rather than having to go through the traditional bank route and expand at a far slower rate like we have been the last 100+ years.
 
The SEC does not care about your intent. If your actions result in investors who found out about your investment over the internet, you could be in serious trouble.

You best route is a competent tax lawyer.

Well I am not taking any unsolicited investor so that makes it simple. What my plan is to do it to speak with capital managers and investors later. Maybe I am miss speaking my final intent also, this will not be a publicly traded company, basically the term share is used to calculate investor stake not actually traded. There would be no stock to buy or sell, people would be partners for a percentage basically and legally speaking the SEC has no say on legal private LLC partnerships last time I checked. I think my terminology maybe gave people the wrong idea, I would not be trying to recreate ADM or any publicly traded company.
 
Well I am not taking any unsolicited investor so that makes it simple. What my plan is to do it to speak with capital managers and investors later. Maybe I am miss speaking my final intent also, this will not be a publicly traded company, basically the term share is used to calculate investor stake not actually traded. There would be no stock to buy or sell, people would be partners for a percentage basically and legally speaking the SEC has no say on legal private LLC partnerships last time I checked. I think my terminology maybe gave people the wrong idea, I would not be trying to recreate ADM or any publicly traded company.

I understand that completely. However, I fear you are naive about what can be construed as an investment on which the SEC feels they have a right to pass judgement. You can argue all day about your intent and how you intend to find investors. I am not the authority you have to worry about. I simply and strongly recommend that you seek competent counsel about what you can and cannot say in the public domain to remain out of trouble. If I'm wrong, no harm, no foul. If I'm right, you could end up in a world of hurt. It's your call.
 
I think it sounds very sensible, so I would think you'd have no problem finding investors.
 
Just generally speaking I agree , farming is a growth industry.

But keep clear of the money men, lawyers, accountants and other vultures. They'll pick you clean if they can and tie you up in so much red tape you won't be able to do much except get more lawyers. I hate the *******s.
 
I understand that completely. However, I fear you are naive about what can be construed as an investment on which the SEC feels they have a right to pass judgement. You can argue all day about your intent and how you intend to find investors. I am not the authority you have to worry about. I simply and strongly recommend that you seek competent counsel about what you can and cannot say in the public domain to remain out of trouble. If I'm wrong, no harm, no foul. If I'm right, you could end up in a world of hurt. It's your call.

Well I really am not concerned at all because just for the record I have no ownership or control over the farm technically, it is just concept. I understand that private land ownership deals are a security & do fall under SEC rules & regulations and I understand a lot more than that also. My family has been farming for longer than most families have been in the country so I am more than secure in what I can and cannot say based upon my position in the situation. Again I think that maybe people are majorly misunderstanding.
 
Well I am not taking any unsolicited investor so that makes it simple. What my plan is to do it to speak with capital managers and investors later. Maybe I am miss speaking my final intent also, this will not be a publicly traded company, basically the term share is used to calculate investor stake not actually traded. There would be no stock to buy or sell, people would be partners for a percentage basically and legally speaking the SEC has no say on legal private LLC partnerships last time I checked. I think my terminology maybe gave people the wrong idea, I would not be trying to recreate ADM or any publicly traded company.

Because of the current financial crisis you may find difficulty in convincing good venture capital firms. That is good for you, in a way, because it sorts the wheat from the chaff.

Those that show the most interest need to be carefully checked out-

Anyway, I wish you well but I think that you should contact other farmers who have gone down your route, they will have had interesting experiences to relate, I'm sure.

Good luck.
 
Because of the current financial crisis you may find difficulty in convincing good venture capital firms. That is good for you, in a way, because it sorts the wheat from the chaff.

Those that show the most interest need to be carefully checked out-

Anyway, I wish you well but I think that you should contact other farmers who have gone down your route, they will have had interesting experiences to relate, I'm sure.

Good luck.

Very good point about over eager firms. Just because I think it would be a great idea doesn't mean that everyone should jump on board and see the merits without really having to selling it so to speak. Most farmers are extremely conservitive, that's why we are still around in a way I guess, so there are not really any to talk to that have tried it. That is the danger in a way I guess, but in the end I probably won't end up acting on the thought, just thinking out loud to see other's thoughts.
 
Refreshing to hear someone from farming regarding farming as a business, rather than a heritage life-style choice. The problem is that if farming is to be looked at as a business, it breaks all the rules about having all your eggs in one basket. Your own income, your partner's, your family's, your children's, your children's children's - as well as the secure tenure of your own home - all depend on this one business which in general terms cannot expand and cannot re-locate.

Why not sell the farm at an all-time high price - you say there's a boom in agriculture right now - and get into a true business? You're obviously an entrepeneur, you will find something that you can make pay and that will be sustainable over your working life. And you won't need to take the risk of setting up a business from scratch, with the proceeds from the farm sale you should be able to buy a going concern.

Remember the saying we used to hear in 1999 or 2000 about the internet being the new gold rush - and the saying that it was never the miners who flocked to California that got rich, it was the people who sold them the picks and shovels. Right now, you're a miner and so you understand what the job needs - why not get into the picks and shovels business?
 
I agree with MG, sounds like a great idea and I can't imagine no-one will bite.

If you can't think about what the next step is, try researching funds that purchase land and sell the carbon credits (and the firms that packaged the deal together).
 
Refreshing to hear someone from farming regarding farming as a business, rather than a heritage life-style choice. The problem is that if farming is to be looked at as a business, it breaks all the rules about having all your eggs in one basket. Your own income, your partner's, your family's, your children's, your children's children's - as well as the secure tenure of your own home - all depend on this one business which in general terms cannot expand and cannot re-locate.

Why not sell the farm at an all-time high price - you say there's a boom in agriculture right now - and get into a true business? You're obviously an entrepeneur, you will find something that you can make pay and that will be sustainable over your working life. And you won't need to take the risk of setting up a business from scratch, with the proceeds from the farm sale you should be able to buy a going concern.

Remember the saying we used to hear in 1999 or 2000 about the internet being the new gold rush - and the saying that it was never the miners who flocked to California that got rich, it was the people who sold them the picks and shovels. Right now, you're a miner and so you understand what the job needs - why not get into the picks and shovels business?

Sell an established family business in which, yourself, are an expert? Consider that very carefully. Over here, we have just heard of the death of Mathews, who put turkeys on the plates of innumerable Britishers in the UK and became a household name, himself. If you have an idea like that, don't sell the family farm! :D
 
I live in a farming area and a few years ago many local farmers got into terrible debt, buying shiny new tractors etc. If they had stuck with the old ways they would be sitting pretty now.
 
I agree with MG, sounds like a great idea and I can't imagine no-one will bite.

If you can't think about what the next step is, try researching funds that purchase land and sell the carbon credits (and the firms that packaged the deal together).



I have been doing some looking into the carbon credit sector and we do qualify, though I think it is a joke, and the thought of using it as another way to add to the pot of why it is a great investment is a very interesting part that I had not thought of. Thanks for the idea.
 
I have been doing some looking into the carbon credit sector and we do qualify, though I think it is a joke, and the thought of using it as another way to add to the pot of why it is a great investment is a very interesting part that I had not thought of. Thanks for the idea.

Of course, any carbon that you can sell credits for, you should. But my suggestion to check them out was more along the lines of finding out how they are structured / what the customer base is / what the legal aspects are, and so on.

That, I think, could give you ideas on how to establish your idea on a commercial scale, and hopefully put you in contact with someone in the industry.

Good luck!
 
Top