USSEC recently conducted a workshop on family businesses for a group of feed manufacturers in Guadalajara, Mexico.  An estimated 80% of feed manufacturers in Mexico, accounting for the largest share of feed output, are family owned and operated.  As many companies grow closer to transferring control to the next generation, being sold or closing entirely, USSECC’s objective is to help these businesses continue and succeed.

The participating feed manufacturers, members of the National Feed Producers Association (ANFACA), represent almost a third of the feed produced in Mexico.  USSEC partnered with the Pan-American Institute of Business management (IPADE) to present a program focusing on the relevance of the transition process and the multiple challenges it entails for family businesses.  The 79 participants represented 22 different family-owned companies which will be transitioning from the first to the second generation.
The opening session was conducted by USSEC and highlighted that the majority of soybean producing farms in the United States are family owned / operated, with a number of owners who are fourth and fifth generation farmers.  IPADE experts conducted a case study about the challenges facing family businesses in transition along with an interactive session discussing continuity in the family business.  A discussion about the four lines of work in a family business to prepare for a successful succession followed.  The four lines include:  the family and the successors; the company management team and the strength of the business; the government of the company and the family; and the preparation of the time and future roles of family.
Workshop participants appreciated USSEC’s support in leveraging their businesses’ permanence with innovative and resourceful initiatives extremely useful.  They found content to be relevant to their companies and felt that the seminar served them well in looking at their businesses’ reality and the challenges that lie ahead in terms of transition and continuity, topics which are crucial from USSEC’s perspective.