Read the latest news about Great Plains Ag Credit from the Tenth Farm Credit District member magazine, Landscapes:
News
New Plainview Office
GPAC directors (l to r) Bryan Reinart, Trent Finck, Joe Reinart, Dennis Anthony and Danny Detten; GPAC staff (l to r) Harriett Burleson, Daleyn Schwartz, Don Dixon, Tammy Fields, Cliff Daniel, Tim McDonald at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Plainview office.
The new location of Great Plains Ag Credit in Plainview, Texas is officially open for business. On December 16, 2012, staff, directors, and stockholders attended a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the end of the year-long building project.
“We want to thank everyone who came to our open house and ribbon cutting,” said Plainview branch manager, Cliff Daniel. “Harriett, Tammy, Daleyn, Don, and I are very excited to be in this beautiful new building.”
Special consideration went into planning a building that would provide privacy in offices and conference rooms which are available for stockholder business use. The Plainview office is a hub for serving the surrounding counties and its stockholders number over 300.“The members served by the Plainview branch office are very loyal to Great Plains and some of the best operators in the South Plains area,” remarked Tim McDonald, CEO.“We want to thank those members, to show our loyalty and appreciation for their business. This new building is a symbol of our commitment to agriculture in this area."
Farm Credit: Celebrating Co-op Month and 95 Years of Service
Farm Credit, the nation’s cooperatively owned financial institution, celebrates its 95th anniversary this year. Like the farmers and ranchers it serves, it continues to adapt to changes in agriculture to meet the needs of its customer-owners. Great Plains Ag Credit is proud to be a part of this nationwide system, profiled in a blog from the USDA’s Dan Campbell in recognition of Co-op Month. Read the blog.
Campbell is editor of the USDA’s Rural Cooperatives magazine, where you can keep up with news about co-ops every month. Read the magazine online at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov.
Personal Touch Important In Crop Insurance Purchase
In an article about the importance of crop insurance in farmers’ and ranchers’ risk management strategy, Southwest Farm Press turned to Rachel Myers, director of insurance services for Great Plains Ag Credit. Read what Rachel has to say about the lessons producers learned in 2012, and how planning now could minimize risk in 2012. Read entire article >
Master Marketer Program Comes to Plainview
The Master Marketer program is a 64-hour intensive marketing education course during which agricultural producers, ag lenders, and others are trained in marketing techniques, marketing plans, technical analysis, futures and options, and many other marketing related skills. This set of skills becomes their marketing "toolkit" which equips them to apply the skills to many situations that might arise when conducting agricultural business.
Graduates of the Master Marketer programs receive much more from their education than just financial benefit. Since the inception of the program in 1996, producers report a 130% increase in the adoption of a marketing plan, and a 561% increase in the adoption of a written plan by those who answered “yes” to having a marketing plan.
There is also a tremendous increase in the improvement in confidence of Master Marketer graduates in using marketing tools. Producers rated their “before” and “after” confidence level on a scale of 1-7, and reported an increase from 3.30 to 5.70, an average of 73% improvement in their confidence and willingness to use marketing tools.
While the course will benefit producers of all ages, Great Plains Ag Credit has offered to once again reimburse the class fees for stockholders who fit the FCA criteria of Young or Beginning Farmers and Ranchers. Visit with your lender for more information about this “scholarship”. For more information on the program, please see their website http://agecoext.tamu.edu/programs/marketing/master-marketer-program.html where you can register for the class which begins in January 2012. Class size is limited so register today!
