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2003 Technical Symposium Agenda

For the last two years, the Council has been working on a Managerial Accounting project, which is attempting to build on the work of a number of commodity groups and develop an overall set of guidelines for adoption of managerial accounting methodologies on a multi-commodity farm or ranch. The project has been a very significant undertaking, and progress has been less rapid than we had hoped. However, the current plan is to have a draft of the Managerial Accounting guidelines available for review by the FFSC Board at this year's annual meeting, and for them to be published for public comment shortly thereafter.

The work on the managerial accounting guidelines has also raised a number of issues that have implications on the core FFSC Guidelines first published ten years ago. This year's symposium will focus on those issues that have arisen that impact the core Guidelines and need to be addressed from a consistency standpoint. They include inventory valuation, revenue recognition, handling of inventory-based accrual adjustments on the income statement, certain ratio calculations, and a number of others. The Council is faced with a couple of alternatives -- to try and modify the Guidelines to move them closer to the MA recommendations in these particular areas; or to modify the Guidelines so that they speak to two separate audiences -- those who have adopted the MA recommendations and those who have not.

The pros and cons are lengthy on either side of this decision -- and perhaps there is a third option that we have not yet discovered.

Come join us and offer your thoughts and guidance on how the Council should proceed.

Press Release

Farm Financial Council Schedules Summer Symposium

 (Naperville, IL, June 6, 2003) -- Individuals involved with accounting and the preparation of financial statements for agricultural producers should plan on attending the one-day annual summer symposium scheduled for August 20 by the Farm Financial Standards Council (Council) at the St. Louis Airport Hilton.

“The Council’s original product, the Financial Guidelines for Agricultural Producers, has been used by thousands of agricultural producers, accountants, lenders and educators to help improve financial understanding for many producers,” says Kevin Moss, Council vice president and chair of the event. “Now the group is moving beyond the basic Guidelines.”

Moss explains that over the past two years Council volunteer members have been meeting with representatives from various producer groups on a Management Accounting (MA) project designed to bring elements of commonality to financial charts of accounts and other accounting procedures and policies. Grant funding for this project has been provided by the National Pork Producers Council, National Corn Growers Association, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, and the United Soybean Board.

“The MA project will provide more sophisticated tools to agricultural producers allowing them to be more agile, responsive, and successful in the coming marketplace,” Moss explains.

“This project, and its resulting impact on agricultural financial reporting, will be a major point of discussion at the upcoming symposium. We are hoping that anyone involved with this aspect of the industry will come to the meeting and join in the dialogue,” Moss says.

The symposium will begin at 7:30 a.m. on August 20 and conclude by late afternoon. There is a meeting registration fee of $75 and preregistration by August 10 will be required. The deadline for lodging reservations is July 20.

Registration form or call 630-637-0199.

Carroll E. Merry
Countryside Marketing, Inc.
630-637-0199 - Telephone
630-637-0198 - Fax