By Zack Metzger, NY State Agricultural Mediation Program
Agricultural businesses run on relationships. The feed supplier, the nutritionist, the fertilizer dealer all know their customers, understand the seasonal pressures, and often extend more grace on unpaid accounts than other industries do.
But past-due accounts have a limit. And when a customer falls too far behind, the path forward feels narrow because court is expensive and harms the relationship; collections do the same; and writing it off means absorbing a loss that adds up fast across a tight-margin business.
What most agribusinesses do not know is that there is another option.
The New York State Agricultural Mediation Program (NYSAMP), as the only USDA-certified agricultural mediation program in New York State, offers free, confidential conciliation and mediation services to help agricultural businesses resolve unpaid accounts and credit disputes without going to court or through collections. Services are available statewide.
For businesses dealing with unpaid accounts, NYSAMP's conciliation service is often the right fit. NYSAMP speaks separately with each party to work toward an agreement. The business decides what terms it can accept: full payment, partial payment, or a payment plan. NYSAMP then works to see if the debtor can meet them. There is no direct confrontation. Just a conversation with NYSAMP, a neutral party working on your behalf.
For situations that involve more than the debt itself (a longstanding relationship, a complicated history, circumstances worth talking through), mediation brings both parties together with a trained neutral mediator to reach an agreed-upon plan to move forward.
Credit disputes are just one type of issue NYSAMP handles for the agricultural community. The program mediates a wide range of agricultural issues including USDA determinations, farm leases, family farm transitions, right-to-farm issues, family and divorce issues, and more. If it affects a farm or agricultural business in New York State, NYSAMP can likely help.
"With more than 25 years of experience working alongside farmers and agricultural businesses across New York, we at NYSAMP know this need is real and know these services work," said Amber Russell, Statewide Director. "We just want folks to know that we are here, happy to help and all it takes is a quick phone call to get started."
To learn more visit nysamp.org, call 1-866-669-7267, or email questions@nysamp.org. Reaching out does not commit you to anything.