Family farm managers earn less, but gain 'emotional' wealth

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-08/cu-ffm082615.php

Public Release: 26-Aug-2015
Family farm managers earn less, but gain 'emotional' wealth
Cornell University

After hours harvesting forage, managing livestock and milking cows, new Cornell University agricultural economic research shows family members who work on the family dairy farm make $22,000 less annually than comparable hired managers, but are handsomely compensated with "socioemotional" wealth.

"While $22,000 seems like a large penalty, there are nonfinancial rewards they experience working for the family business," said Loren Tauer, professor at Cornell's Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, who with lead author Jonathan Dressler of MetLife's Food and Agribusiness Finance, published "Socioemotional Wealth in the Family Farm," in a forthcoming Agricultural Finance Review.

There are roughly 5,400 dairy farms in New York, large and small. "Family members like to work for the family farm, as it brings prestige and satisfaction by working with siblings, cousins and parents," explains Tauer. "The socioemotional part is that these family members feel an attachment to the dairy farm. It's a warm and fuzzy feeling."

Further, Dressler explained that socioemotional aspects of running a dairy farm "create a sense of pride and belonging, as collectively each family member is contributing an effort toward a common family goal."

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