Record Keeping for Fruit Farm Businesses

Developed by: Alison M. De Marree

Cornell Cooperative ExtensionLake Ontario Fruit Program, Winter 2014

Adapted by: Virginia CarlbergCornell Cooperative Extension

Chautauqua County

Why Keep Records?Required by law and government agency regulations

IRS, DEC, DOL, Organic Certifiers, Food Safety (GAP) Certifiers

To PROTECT your business against government agency audits (non-compliance fines) and lawsuits.

To increase profits, efficiencies, return on investment by monitoring labor use and expense as related to the income generated by various enterprises.

To evaluate progress by comparing set standards from one year to the next

For insurance reasons (to make claims)To obtain a loan – required by financial institutions

Two Categories of RecordsProduction Records:

Items that relate to quantities of inputs and levels of production by enterprise and/or by resource type: yields per acre, varieties planted and harvested, pounds or bushels sold

Two Categories of RecordsFinancial Records:

Justify or prove farm income or expense transactions: Product sales, operating expenses, equipment purchases, accounts payable, accounts receivable, inventories, depreciation records, loan balances and price information.

Production and Financial Records are put together for a complete picture of your farms’ performance.

Financial Record-Keeping2013 Income Expenses

Date Description Strawberries

Blueberries

Fertilizer Fuel

5/1 Sold 100 quarts strawberries at Farmers Market

$500

6/1 Sold 200 pints blueberries at Farmers Market

$900

10/21 Purchased 5 ton fertilizer

$5000

11/20 Filled Fuel Tank $2000

Enterprise Record-KeepingIncome Expense Strawberry Blueberry Livestock

Date Description

Strawberries

Blueberries

Fertilizer

Fuel Income

Expense

Income

Expense

Income

Expense

5/1 100 qts. strawberries

$500 $500

6/1 100 pints blueberries

$900 $900

10/21

5 ton fertilizer

$5000 $5000

11/20

fuel tank $2000

$1000 $1000

Types of RecordsPaper

Account booksElectronic Records

Use of spreadsheets (& smart phones)Summarizing daily records on spreadsheetsQuickBooks, Quicken, Red Wing & Other

Accounting SoftwareBack Ups!Keep Hard Copies & Physical Receipts in

Files

QuickBooks

VersionPayroll featuresPrint ChecksChart of AccountsAssistance with getting started

Cornell Farm Account BookPaper- classic (green)Excel

What do you use?

What tools do you use to record production data?

What do you use to record labor information?

• Labor is often the largest expense for farm operations

• Are you gauging how well your labor force is performing?

• What data can you have your field help gather for you?

Employee TimecardsHoursJobField/OrchardVarietyYield/Quantity

Food Safety: Traceability RecordsIncreasing regulatory environmentTraceability- from field to forkGood Agricultural Practices (GAP)

CertificationPackaging labels

SummaryRecord-keeping is important for various

external and internal factorsFinancial Records and Production RecordsMany tools available, paper and electronicConsider labor logsConsider food safety records and traceability