As an industry, farming is facing unprecedented challenges. Bridgette Jackson offers some advice on dealing with the resulting stresses.
Fluctuating and downward market prices, skyrocketing supply costs, and increased interest rates are all placing pressure on finances. Combine this with lower income as well as environmental events over the last five years, such as droughts and flooding, has resulted in financial pressure that many are describing as the most challenging they’ve faced.
It’s no secret that farm businesses have difficult times, but the last few years have been disproportionately hard. The emotional and physical stress associated with trying to maintain an income and managing a farm business and household can test the strongest of relationships.
Research in the mid-1990s looked at the importance of ‘pluriactivity’ (having an agricultural activity and a non-agricultural activity) as an income strategy, originally in three South Island districts. This research led to other studies, with one of those funded by MAF Policy looking at both men and women, who undertook pluriactivity. The study showed that secondary employment or ‘off-farm’ employment had at that time, “become an important source of income for families facing cyclical commodity prices, periodic rises in farm input prices, and climatic events such as prolonged drought.”*
The study also revealed that holding multiple jobs was more common among people in rural areas compared to their urban counterparts. Interestingly, the trend of seeking of secondary employment was also prevalent in the wider rural communities. Across New Zealand, more women than men engaged in pluriactivity. Some secondary employment activities were diversifying what was grown or sold off the farm, while other employment was in education, retail, or café work.
The family reality you’re facing
As a farm operates as a business as well as serves as a home, the financial pressures are always omnipresent. Supplementing the farm business income may not be new, but it does come with its own set of challenges. The fear of losing everything, of letting the family down (especially when intergenerational) adds an extra layer of determination and drive, so it’s crucial when discussing finances, that as a couple, you remain aligned on ‘how, what, and when’. This will require objectivity and being prepared to accept you will not get everything your own way. You both will have to compromise.
For many non-farmers, the idea of picking up extra work to supplement the household income is an obvious answer, whether it would be in fast food, night retail, call centre work, or working as an Uber driver. However, for those living in rural areas, it’s not that simple. Effective planning and communication are crucial when one partner looks to take on an additional job to ensure the plan’s success without straining the relationship. This can be especially daunting for younger farmers who’ve recently taken over the running of a farm business and requires a couple to be creative in generating additional income while protecting the relationship.
There are numerous considerations to factor in, with family and commuting being the most important, while still working on the farm.
Other considerations are:
- Access to childcare or after-school care, which for many rural families, is not an option
- The roles each couple has in the farm business and home plus adapting for each season
- Access to bus services getting to and from school each day, and whether your children are dropped at the gate or need to be collected from a central point
- After-school activities, such as swimming lessons and sports training and what the round trip is for each activity
- After-school tutoring, whether this is online or with someone in the community
Weighing options
When considering options to supplement farm income, it’s essential to take a broad view, especially given that current economic forecasts do not predict an upswing in farm income any time soon. As a couple, you know each other’s strengths, so leveraging these will be beneficial.
Each family’s situation is unique, so decisions around supplementing farm income should be tailored to your specific circumstances. Involving the whole family in discussions and evaluating the options together is crucial. How can each family member help, both at home and on the farm?
As a couple, being aligned when it comes to values and goals and agreeing not only on the short-term plan but also on the longer-term plan is key. Your intimate relationship and family dynamic depend on the alignment, and it’s important to accept that you won’t agree on everything – this is OK.
If you’re looking short-term and opting for additional farm work without help is a necessity, you could consider hiring a neighbour or a local teenager to work one day a week to give you both a day off. This can bring balance to the health of the couple and the family dynamic. Any farm-based additional income opportunities could be a no-brainer if you both agree on the plan if there’s a market for it, and if it aligns with long-term goals.
Remember that living, working, and socialising together in a small rural community will feel intense at times; this is why having individual hobbies, weekly sports activities, and visiting friends can provide a different perspective.
Considerations when weighing options:
- Open communication
- Consider what’s sustainable both physically and emotionally and factor in best and worst-case scenarios
- Identify skills you have that could work in a work-from-home scenario
- Proximity to family and friends, both for emotional and physical support
- Balancing commuting, work, family, and personal commitments
- Reviewing your budget and financial plan
- Supporting each other in the small things, both on the farm and at home
- Manage risk; this can include setting aside funds for unforeseen events and having a plan for emergencies
- Including older children in discussions and planning. This not only educates them about the farm as a business but also includes them in the planning and can empower them.
- Seeking professional advice from financial advisers who specialise in agribusiness. They can provide insights and knowledge and help with an objective view, if appropriate.
What you can do together
Surviving financially difficult times while maintaining a strong relationship is challenging. When you factor in that you also work and live together, the challenges can feel even more daunting. It’s crucial for couples in this situation to communicate openly and honestly about their financial struggles, as well as their individual needs and concerns.
Setting clear financial goals together, creating a budget, and finding ways to support each other through these tough times can help strengthen the relationship. It’s important to remember that financial difficulties are temporary and can be overcome with patience, teamwork, and a positive attitude. By facing these challenges together, couples can emerge stronger and more resilient, with a deeper bond forged through shared experiences and overcoming adversity.
Some practical steps can include:
- Use technology for budgeting, planning, and scheduling the necessary things
- Spend time together as a couple outside of being business partners. Mark dates on the calendar and remember you don’t have to spend money to spend time together. A date can be as simple as an evening drink together and/or dinner in a different part of the house, with no distractions – this includes no phones and devices, no children, and no farm or work talk.
- Take each other back to the start of your relationship and reminisce and remind each other about what you have built together over time
- Celebrate the small things and the big things together. These can be getting through what you both know is usually a tough month or a busy time and also the bigger milestones, such as anniversaries, birthdays, and weddings. The key here is that you’re connecting with your partner for something positive, rather than something financial or work-related.
- Do something for each other, every day. Most of us will know how it feels when someone does something for you out of routine, such as bringing your morning drink to you, coming out to meet you when you get home, and connecting with you in that moment.
- Connect with your community, as a couple and separately, and help each other to do that
- Communicate clearly and with respect and remember that they’re your intimate partner
- Set boundaries by clearly defining when you’re working as business partners and when you’re a couple
- Remember to laugh together
Financial stress can strain even the most resilient business and life partnerships, so remember no business partnership is immune. By staying connected, prioritising communication, and mutual support of each other along with being aligned on what the short- and long-term goals are, you will strengthen your relationship and ensure the long-term success of both your farm business and your family.
Bridgette Jackson is a CDC-certified divorce/separation coach with a post-graduate dispute resolution qualification. She’s also a trained divorce mediator (AIMNZ), a relationship coach (Institute for Life Coach Training), and a member of the Institute of Executive Coaching and Leadership (accredited by the ICF – International Coaching Federation). Bridgette is an enrolled barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand.
* Multiple Job Holding of Farmers in New Zealand Paper presented at the Agrifoods X Conference Akaroa, 21-24 April 2003 by Nick Taylor – Taylor Baines & Associates, Heather McCrostie Little, Ruris James Baines – Taylor Baines & Associates and James Newell – Monitoring Evaluation Research Associates.
Photos: Adobe Stock