Business Plan: Farm Fresh Pty Ltd - Banana Farm in Innisfail (Diploma)

This business plan outlines the strategy for starting a banana farm, Farm Fresh Pty Ltd, in Innisfail, Australia. The plan details the production process, including land preparation, planting, irrigation, and harvesting. It includes a market analysis highlighting the demand for bananas and the target market. The plan also covers sales and marketing activities, a vision and mission statement, roles and responsibilities, and a financial analysis with projections for the first three years, including initial capital requirements. The business aims to become a leading commercial banana farm, focusing on high-quality production and market penetration through various sales and marketing strategies. The initial investment will be approximately $1 million, secured through a mix of equity and debt financing. The plan emphasizes the importance of planning, efficient operations, and strategic marketing to achieve success in the competitive banana farming industry.

Running head: DIPLOMA IN AGRICULTURE
Diploma in Agriculture
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Discussion........................................................................................................................................3
Starting a Banana Farm Business................................................................................................3
Planning Production.....................................................................................................................3
Action Plan..................................................................................................................................5
Market Analysis...........................................................................................................................7
Sales and Marketing Activity......................................................................................................8
Vision and Mission Statement.....................................................................................................9
Roles and Responsibilities...........................................................................................................9
Financial Analysis.....................................................................................................................10
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................12

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Introduction
As an aspiring and budding Entrepreneur starting the business in the field of agricultural
sector of an economy, is what has been considered for the new start-up business plan. One can be
rest assured that there are loads and variety of companies that are operating in the Agricultural
Industry, sector of the economy because of the various underlying opportunity available to the
investors and the companies operating in this field. Banana is a very nutritious product and is
considered as one of the healthy food items, because of the health benefit that is associated with
the product. The product is enriched with loads of essential nutrients that is required for the
benefit of digestion, hearth health condition and subsequently for weight loss. The health benefit
and low priced item, makes the demand for product/fruit to be increasing in the recent years. The
new start-up business will be done on a Banana farm Business where we would be leasing the 70
Acre Land at Mighell, Innisfail. The company will be operating with its trading name as Farm
Fresh Pty Ltd with the owner of the company being Lepani Tuikenawa taking important
management decision for the purpose of successfully carrying on the business operations. In
order to well assess the financial viability of the business a financial projection for the start-up
business will be done where relevant source of income and expenses that the company will be
earning will be taken into consideration. The profitability and the associated return that will be
generated from the business sin the trend period analyzed for the farm Fresh Pty Ltd will be
taken into consideration for the purpose of assessing the overall financial viability of the
business.

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Discussion
Starting a Banana Farm Business
Farming of Banana is considered as a profitable business investment allowing the small
scale industries to evolve from a small scale level to a global industry level. Countries like
Caribbean, North America, Africa and South America are some of the forefront countries in
cultivating bananas. It is crucial to note that starting a business comes with its set of own
challenges, and despite of that it cannot be regarded as a risky business for start-up. An
entrepreneur can decide upon starting the business of banana farm with the help of the financial
capital that is available to the entrepreneur (Bartel and Soldati 2017). The owner of the company
being Lepani Tuikenawa has a 10 years of experience in farming business and will be taking the
charge of various operational activity that will be carried on by the company. The plan of the
farming business is that the farming will be done by leasing a 70 acres of land at Mighell,
Innisfail.
Planning Production
It is important to plan out the Banana Production that will be carried on by the company
where the company will be aiming at farming that generates quality products and profitability for
the equity shareholders of the company (Policy and Us, 2017). In order to start with the banana
production a calendar year plan will be rolled out for the firm where the 70 acres of land will be
undergoing a process of screening in terms of Soil Analysis, Preparing the land, Planting of
Trees, Spacing necessary between each rows of plants cultivated, fertilizing, Descukering,
Irrigating and Harvesting will be some of the key steps that needs o be taken care in the
production process.

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Figure 1: Planning Production
In the first set of production process a soil analysis will be performed before planting for
observing that whether nematodes are present that will be helping the plant get necessary
nutrients it requires. Irrigation, Ripping, Plough and ridging the field by applying lime, potash,
and phosphate will be helping the company in the process of plough (Daily Monitor.2019). There
would be several steps that would be taken for the process of measuring and digging holes in the

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land for carrying on the planting process. After the given set of actions planting, irrigating and
fertilizing the plants would be done (Finelib.com 2019).
Figure 2: Calendar/Year Plan

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Action Plan
In order to successfully carry out the business planning process it is important to plan out
the action process for the company whereby the various operations of the company will be
planed out. The key action plan is outlined below:
 Deciding the Cultivator
 Identification of the place where bananas will be marketed.
 Deciding and taking up important decisions based on the size of land, spacing required
between each plants planted.
 Obtaining required finances for buying various inputs such as tissues, fertilizers and
cultural plants.
 Buying and Obtaining Land Preparation Equipment’s like tractors for the purpose of
carrying on plough process, discing and various other process ("Banana Farming Project
Report, Cost And Profit Details | Agri Farming". 2018).
 Planning out the Labor required for successfully carrying on the various business
operations of the company.
 Buying and Fetching Planting Material from a nursery so that the planting production
can go on well (Nhb.gov.in 2019).
 The action plan should also include the process that would be set up for getting rid of
weeds.
 The irrigation facilities that would be used for the purpose of planting and irrigation
support should be well checked and analyzed so that the same provides an adequate
support to the business level of operations.
 In order to desucker the banana plants there should be selection of the ratoons.

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 At the same time it would be important for planning out the brunches that would be
covered and propping the plants that would be undertaken for the purpose of planting.
 Harvesting of the banana plant would be done at the right time after it has completed the
adequate time in production process.
 The company should also plan out the various ways whereby it can plan out the income
level that would be utilized by the company.
The list of Equipment’s that would be necessary for the purpose of Operations will be as follows:
 Tractor
 Soil cultivator
 Plough
 Harrow (e.g. Spike harrow, Drag harrow, Disk harrow)
 Stone/Rock/Debris removal implement (e.g. DE stoner, Rock windrower/rock rake, Stone
picker/picker)
 Broadcast seeder (alternatively: broadcast spreader, fertilizer spreader, or Air seeder)
 Planter
 Plastic mulch layer
 Trans planter
 Sprinkler system irrigation
 Mower
 Sickle
 Wheel Barrow
 Truck

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Market Analysis
The market analysis for the commercial banana farm industry shows that the players and
companies operating in the industry are not highly concentrated and smack scale companies are
primarily the major part of the companies forming up the industry total sales. The market for
banana business is found to be oversaturated and companies operating in the industry has been
developing various methods and techniques for the process of improving the production process
and overall output with the help of the technological process that is deployed in the business.
Technological innovation and processes has helped companies in the process of cultivation,
preservation and processing of the products. It is important to consider and note that the market
for banana business is already there where a high demand is expected in the market that would
be allowing a positive boost for the overall sales activity of the company.
The target market for the company is huge where commercial banana farming is
encompassing and has reached far to a great extent. It is crucial to note that the farm business is
consumed by every households, in addition the Farm Fresh Company would be able to sell its
product to as many as possible people including hotels, grocery stores, restaurants, retail outlets,
online grocery shops, dormitories and various other who associate and form up the demand for
the product.
Sales and Marketing Activity
In order to well introduce the company and the product it will be preparing a broachers,
introduction letters to the various stakeholders operating in the agricultural industry, grocery and
retail stores, banana merchants, hotels & restaurants and banana processing plants. Advertising
the operations and the product of the company in the Food and Agricultural related magazines
and articles would be the key approach that would be followed by the company

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(Business.qld.gov.au 2019). Listing the commercial banana farms on the yellow pages can also
be considered as one of the best options of sales and marketing strategy that can be used by the
company. Reaching out to the consumers and delivering products in an effective manner will be
some of the key highlight that the company will be undertaking for the purpose of increasing the
market penetration or the undertaken level of sales activity by the company.
Vision and Mission Statement
Vision Statement: The key vision statement of the company is to become one of the leading
commercial banana farms in the food processing and packaging brand not only in Mighell,
Innisfail but on an overall basis in the Australian Region. The key vision of the company is to
capture a significant market share in the industry with the help of better connectivity and
association with the retail stores, grocery markets, and other key industries where the demand
and consumption for the product associated is high (Fairtrade.org.uk 2019).
Mission Statement: The mission statement of the company is to become a leading farm in the
field of banana farming so that it is well able to meet the growing demands and needs of banana
fruit. The mission of the company is to deliver the associated product in every corner of
Australia so that it can have a well-established market for its product offered in the market.
Roles and Responsibilities
It is well important to define the various roles and responsibilities that would be shared
by the various divisions of the management of the company so that it allows the company to
define the roles and responsibilities that would be taken in the given set of business conditions
(Arc.agric.za 2019).

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Chief Operating Officer: The CEO of the company would be increasing the management
efficiency by recruiting, selecting, orientation, training, coaching and counselling of the various
business operations of the company. Implementation of the planned vision and mission of the
company will be the sole responsibility of the achieving the mission and vision of the company.
General Farm Manager: The manager would be responsible for the planning, management and
coordinating the various activities on behalf of the company. The manager would be supervising
the various sections of the company that will be in the form of Banana Cultivation, Processing
and Packaging process that is well effectively carried out by the company.
Accountant/Administrator: The accountant and administrator of the company will be
responsible for overseeing the administrative jobs that are undertaken by the company. The
accountant will be handling all the important financial transactions of the company. They would
ascertain that all the financial transactions are well audited in the books of accounts of the
company.
Financial Analysis
The financial analysis of the company will be done with the help of financial projections
that will be drawn for the company for a sum of three years. The total initial capital that the firm
would be requiring will be around A$1 million and the same would be borrowed by the company
with the help of both equity and debt investment in the business (Ward 2016).
Initial Capital: The initial capital that would be required by the company will be primarily for
the purpose of investing the amount in the operations and for acquiring key assets of the
company. The total amount of initial capital that would be required by the business primarily will
be around A$1 million and the same will be borrowed with the help of equity and debt finance of

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the company. The equity finance will be contributing around 80% of the required capital and the
rest of 20% required finance will be full-filed by debt financing (Agri Farming 2019).
Sales Analysis: The sales that would be generated by the company in the first year of operations
will be around A$800,000 and the same is expected to grow at a 20% rate thereby allowing the
company to account for the growing demand and the rising business operations of the company.
Operational and Direct Expenses: The key operational expenses that the company will be
incurring will be primarily in the field of Rent of Warehouses, Salary and Wages, Accountant
Fees, Suppliers Contract, Registration or license fees. The main operational expenses that the
company will be paying will be the lease payment that it would be paying for the 70 Acre land
that would be taken on a lease basis for the first three years (McKeever 2016). The total
operational expenses that the company will be incurring on the first year of operations will be
around $409,700 and the same is expected to grow at a 5% rate incorporating the rise in the
inflation and costs associated with the expenses for the company in the stated point of time.
Profitability and Return on Investment: The profitability that will be generated from the
business will be around $106,151 in the first year of operations giving an overall return of 13%
in the first year, 20% in the second year and around 27% in the third year.
Conclusion
The business plan for the Farm Fresh Pty Ltd indeed will be a profitable start-up business
plan for Lepani Tuikenawa whereby he would be earning a sufficient amount of return from the
amount invested into the assets of the company. The business operations and the production
process that will be carried out by the company was well stated out in the planned business

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operations. Lastly, it is important to note that the management of the company should carefully
review and undertake various management decisions in order to improve the operations and
overall growth of the business.

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References
"Banana Farming Project Report, Cost And Profit Details | Agri Farming". 2018. Agri Farming.
Accessed September 12 2019. https://www.agrifarming.in/banana-farming-project-report-cost-
and-profit-details.
Agri Farming. 2019. Banana Farming Business Plan - Agri Farming. [online] Available at:
https://www.agrifarming.in/tag/banana-farming-business-plan [Accessed 12 Sep. 2019].
Arc.agric.za. 2019. [online] Available at:
http://www.arc.agric.za/arc-itsc/Leaflets%20Library/Cultivating%20Banana%20-
%20English.pdf [Accessed 12 Sep. 2019].
Bamidele, M.M., Adigun, O.M., Folayan, O.D. and Ibrahim, J., 2018. Exploring the Relationship
between Financial Management and Performances of Cooperative Organisations in Osun
State. Journal of Accounting and Financial Management, 4(4), pp.10-21.
Bartel, C. and Soldati, V., 2017, November. Embeddedness of Chiquita’s Banana Production in
Panama: The potential to mitigate social and ecological problems. In African Technology
Development Forum Journal (Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 32-47). African Technology Development
Forum.
Burns, P. and Dewhurst, J. eds., 2016. Small business and entrepreneurship. Macmillan
International Higher Education.

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Business.qld.gov.au. 2019. Government support for banana producers | Business Queensland.
[online] Available at: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/industries/farms-fishing-forestry/
agriculture/crop-growing/banana-industry/support [Accessed 12 Sep. 2019].
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https://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/Farming/banana-farming-business/689860-2737302-
bwk0txz/index.html [Accessed 12 Sep. 2019].
Fairtrade.org.uk. 2019. Banana farmers and workers | Fairtrade Foundation. [online] Available
at: http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/Farmers-and-Workers/Bananas [Accessed 12 Sep. 2019].
Finelib.com. 2019. Banana Farming: 10 Helpful Tips To Starting a Banana Farming Business.
[online] Available at: https://www.finelib.com/about/agriculture-startup/starting-a-banana-farm-
business/283 [Accessed 12 Sep. 2019].
McKeever, M., 2016. How to write a business plan. Nolo.
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for Beginners🤑. [online] Agrifarmingtips.com. Available at:
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[Accessed 12 Sep. 2019].
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profitability, and family leadership. Springer.