Seventy percent of U.S. farmland will likely change hands during the next two decades. With estimates as high as half of American farmers operating without an estate plan, the Illinois Farm Bureau (IFB) and Country Financial are set to provide farm legacy seminars to aid them as plans are made for the next generation.

The two organizations will host three farm legacy information meetings in February. The seminars will provide current and prospective IFB members and Country Financial clients with tools, protection and ongoing support essential to legacy planning, in order to allow them to keep their farm in the family amid today’s financial challenges.

“Illinois farm families face a series of issues, including rising costs in agriculture and surviving financial stress year to year, that may pull their focus away from planning for the future of the farm,” said IFB President Richard Guebert Jr. “This meeting series will realign that focus in sharing the resources and knowledge they need to have those conversations and preserve their farm legacy.”

Each meeting will include a keynote presentation by Dr. Ron Hanson, Harlan agribusiness professor emeritus at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and professional speaker on farm legacy planning.

Meetings are set to take place in northern, central and southern Illinois. The two-hour seminars will each begin at 5 p.m. with dinner. Dates and locations are as follows:
— Feb. 25 — Hickory Grove Banquet and Conference Center, Rochelle.
— Feb. 26 — I-Hotel and Conference Center, Champaign.
— Feb. 27 — Kokopelli Golf Club, Marion.

Registration for the events is open to current and prospective IFB members and Country Financial clients. To register, people can visit www.ilfb.org/farmplanning.

94.1 WGFA