An enterprise budget is a projection or estimate of the costs and returns of producing a product (enterprise). For example, an organic corn and soybean producer is interested in developing both an organic corn budget and an organic soybean budget for the coming year.

Enterprise budgets are usually prepared on a “per unit” basis. For example, a crop enterprise budget is usually computed for an acre of production. Costs and returns for the entire crop can be calculated by multiplying the budget coefficients by the number of acres that will be produced. A budget for beef cattle is computed on a “cow/calf” unit.  Information for the entire herd is computed by multiplying the coefficients by the size of the herd.

Enterprise budgets are very useful tools. Some of the uses of enterprise budgets for your business are to project the:

• Most viable enterprises
• Most profitable combination of enterprises
• Expected production
• Expected profits
• Expected capital and cash needs
• Expected labor needs
• Expected levels of purchased inputs
• Expected feed needs
• Expected machinery or facility needs
• Other

If you are an organic producer, using Using Organic Crop Budgets provides you with more information on how to use these budgets. Organic Crop Budgets contains sample budgets for organic corn, soybeans, oats and alfalfa. Organic Crop Budgeting Tools allows you to create budgets specific to your situation.

If you are vegetable producer, using Using Vegetable Budgets to Make Decisions provides you with more information on how to use these budgets. Vegetable Budgets [pdf] contains sample budgets for a variety of vegetable enterprises. Vegetable Budgeting Tools allows you to create budgets specific to your situation.

Enterprise budgets for a wide range of specific plants and animals that have been developed by universities across the nation are also available.

For more information on this topic, see the links listed below of articles posted on related Web sites.

• Making Decisions with Enterprise Budgets – Texas A & M University Extension -- An enterprise budgets is an estimate of the costs and returns of producing a product.