The second fundamental question that has to be answered is what are the goals for the farm business. Since most of our farms are still family owned businesses it is imperative that the business goals and family goals be considered. We have many goals and these have to be considered on an individual basis. The goals can be financial, personal, family, business, or many other categories. The point is that the goals are varied.
Economists often use the goal of profit maximization to simplify the analysis.
However, most of the decisions made on farms today are not made to maximize profits. They are made with profits in mind but not the maximum level. The other goals enter into the decisions. When deciding how to manage in a rapidly changing world farmers have to ask themselves what they want and why they are farming. The answer to these questions is very important for determining which way they want to go and how to manage their business.