What comes next? Starting the succession conversation

What will happen to your farm when it is time to step away?

For many growers, it is not an easy question to answer. A farm can carry a family name, support several generations and represent a lifetime of work. Planning what comes next is an important part of protecting what you have built and giving both the business and your family greater certainty about the future.

Across horticulture, that question is becoming more pressing. Younger generations are taking on greater responsibility, established growers are beginning to step back and the dynamics within farm businesses are changing.

There is no single pathway for what comes next. Succession may involve transferring the farm to family, changing the ownership or management structure, selling the business or preparing for an eventual exit. What matters is having enough time to consider the options and decide what a successful transition looks like.

Through the Farm Business Resilience Program (FBRP), QFVG is helping growers make succession part of broader business planning, reducing disruption and helping farm businesses continue through periods of change.

To put that support into practice, FBRP partnered with Proagtive Succession Planning Specialists to deliver workshops that helped growers clarify what they wanted from succession and identify the conversations and decisions needed to move forward.

“Transitioning roles” and “letting go” were among the biggest challenges growers identified during the workshops.

It was a reminder that succession is about more than ownership, finances and legal structures. Stepping back can also mean redefining your role in a business that has shaped your work, relationships and identity for many years.

Proagtive General Manager Jess Cavanagh said this was why it was important for growers to consider what they wanted from the transition, both for the business and for themselves.

“When you leave the business, you want to see that your hard work has gotten you and your family to where you wanted to be,” Jess said.

“You want to be satisfied with your life’s work.”

Workshops like these are designed to provide greater confidence to approach succession planning, with some growers on the day recognising that conversations already taking place about future roles and responsibilities meant they were further along than they had realised.

FBRP facilitator Liz Ford said the workshops gave growers the opportunity to step back and explore what succession could look like for them, their family and their farm business.

“Growers spend a lifetime building their farm business, so succession should be about more than deciding who takes over. It’s also about making sure all that hard work puts you in a position to have the retirement and future you want,” Liz said.

Starting these conversations early gives growers more time to consider their options, involve family members and advisers, and make decisions that reflect both their personal goals and the future needs of the business.

FBRP will continue working with growers and industry partners to keep succession planning on the agenda and encourage more farm businesses to start thinking about what comes next. By planning early, growers can put themselves, their families and their businesses in a stronger position for the future.

Growers who would like more information about succession planning or support with their broader farm business resilience planning are encouraged to contact the QFVG Farm Business Resilience team.

The Farm Business Resilience Program is jointly funded through the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund and the Queensland Government’s Drought and Climate Adaptation Program.