Farm with Profit, Purpose, and Quality of Life

So good to see Dan and Julia join forces to put together their decades of experience in creating effective plans for farms, and more importantly, including details on how to use and continuously improve those plans over the years! This is just as valuable for folks starting out and folks deep into their farm businesses making decisions about how to move forward. While it’s specifically written with examples for small farms, any business would benefit from their framework.

Julia and Dan really hit the nail on the head. They’ve managed to create an immensely workable step-by-step guide to methodically guide farmers toward profitability. The small farm world has needed this book for a long time! The Profitable Farmer is an easy read, with comfortable language and great examples. Actually “doing the work” of filling out the templates and following the thought flow will require exertion – and that’s what farmers are already good at!

If we plant a seed, it can grow. How well it grows depends on the farmer, but how profitable the return depends on so much more. In this amazingly helpful book, longtime farm-business nerds Julia Shanks and Dan Brisebois take us through the critical steps of building farms that grow purposefully and profitably—from vision and financial planning to sales, teams, production, and reflection.

Too many farmers believe working harder is the answer. This book is a refreshing reminder that working smarter with a clear plan, solid numbers, and a vision for the life you actually want to live is what creates a farm that lasts. Julia and Dan have written the guide I wish more farmers had from the very beginning. It's an encouraging and practical read, filled with the kind of wisdom that can change not just a farm business, but the farmer behind it.

Creating a profitable farm is crucial to build a thriving farm. Julia and Dan guide you through the process of getting your financial goals down in writing, including worksheets and formulas that help you make sense of all the moving parts. If your farm is struggling, this book will help bring awareness to the financial drains and ideas for how to focus on increased profits.

I've said it many times, and I'll say it again: growing great vegetables is only half the battle. The other half is selling them well, understanding your numbers, and building a business that gives you the life you set out to create. The best growers master both. The Profitable Farmer is a practical roadmap for getting there. Whether you're just starting out or have been farming for years, this book will help you become not just a better business owner, but ultimately a better grower. I highly recommend it.

Julia and Dan have created a farming manual that feels both instructional and personal. Reading it evokes the feeling of sitting around a kitchen table with a farming friend or mentor, dishes and egos pushed aside, with hopes, dreams and numbers shared honestly and openly. The pages are filled with helpful schedules and templates I wish I'd had as a beginning farmer, and the anecdotes and specifics I crave these days.

This book is full of shrewd strategic planning advice from two experienced leaders in the field. If you want to increase profits on your farm, without adding work, pick up a copy and follow its advice.

Where was this book when I was farming??? Julia Shanks and Dan Brisebois have created the guide I wish I’d had—a practical, step-by-step roadmap for building a profitable farm without sacrificing the quality of life that makes farming worth doing. By combining sound business principles with the real-world math of farm profitability, The Profitable Farmer gives farmers the tools to build businesses that are not only sustainable, but truly viable.