Passing a farm from one generation to the next involves more than transferring land, equipment or livestock. For many farm families, succession means determining the future of a business, a livelihood and a legacy that may have taken generations to build.
That complexity can also make it easy to put succession planning off until circumstances force a family to act.
Farm succession expert Mike Downey with UnCommon Farms has a personal connection to the issue. Neither of the family farms he grew up around is still operating today. He said one of the biggest obstacles to succession planning is the fear of getting something wrong.
Downey said succession plans do not have to be permanent documents. They can evolve as the farm changes, family circumstances change and members of the next generation determine what role they want in the operation.
The first step, however, is getting someone to begin the conversation.
Downey said he has seen younger farmers initiate succession discussions as they begin thinking about their own futures and families. He has also seen the opposite, with parents ready to discuss the future while the next generation has yet to step forward.
Farm succession can be especially complicated because the business and the family are often closely connected. Decisions can involve land, equipment, livestock, finances and management responsibilities, along with relationships between family members.
Downey said a third party can help facilitate those conversations and keep family members and outside advisors working toward the same goals.
Another difficult question is what succession means for the generation currently operating the farm.
Unlike many other careers, retirement from farming may not mean reaching a certain age and completely walking away. Downey said farming is often closely connected to a producer’s identity, and advances in technology are allowing farmers to remain active in their operations longer.
Retirement does not necessarily have to mean leaving the farm completely. Downey said succession can involve transitioning into a different role, allowing the next generation to assume more management responsibility while the older generation remains involved in the parts of farming they enjoy.
The risk is continuing to delay that transition until the family no longer controls the timetable.
Health problems, tax changes and other major life events can suddenly force families to make decisions about the future of the operation. Downey said waiting for one of those events can leave families making complicated and consequential decisions while already under pressure.
His message to farm families in 2026 is to take action before that happens.
Downey said families do not have to solve every succession issue at once. Identifying two or three steps that can be taken over the next 30 to 45 days can be enough to begin moving the process forward.
Ultimately, he said successful succession planning begins with a vision for the future. Families should determine what they want the farm and business to look like 10 or 15 years from now and then work backward to identify the conversations, responsibilities and planning needed to get there.
Starting that process before a crisis gives farm families more time and more control over how the operation moves from one generation to the next.
