Kohl: It’s never too early to teach about farm finances

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Kohl: It’s never too early to teach about farm finances

An economics expert says it’s never too early to learn how money works in the family farm business. 

Dr. David Kohl from Virginia Tech says it’s important to get the children involved in the financial side of the family business so they understand money management early in life. “Oftentimes, even at four years of age to fifteen years of age, getting them ingrained into their financials early is very important for the rest of their life. You’re building a skill base.”

Kohl says when parents pay their children for farm work, use that pay to teach additional financial lessons. “You pay a young person. Fifty percent, they can spend any way they want, twenty-five percent goes to their education, and twenty-five percent goes to a long-term investment, and have them invest in stocks so they can track it and see economic cycles.”

And Kohl strongly supports 4-H and FFA, remembering his youth, “because oftentimes, the children get involved in finance or budgeting in different things like this and you know, while it might be boring for them at the time, it really sets them up for the rest of their life.”

Brownfield interviewed Dr. Kohl during the Professional Dairy Producers business conference in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin.

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