Woolf Farming and Processing

Posted: 2 Feb 2012

See all articles by Laura Winig

Laura Winig

Harvard Business School, Global Research Group

Mary L. Shelman

Harvard University - Business School (HBS)

Date Written: March 8, 2010

Abstract

Woolf Farming Company, a privately owned family farming business in California's Central Valley, found its business threatened by a lack of water, brought on by a combination of drought, poor quality well water and unavailability of surface water due to federally imposed pumping restrictions. Woolf had been farming crops for more than 30 years, but this was the first time they suffered a water shortage so severe that crops had to be abandoned in the field. Even if there was short-term relief in the form of an increased allocation of water from the government, Woolf was concerned about water reliability and the need for additional infrastructure to provide long term water security to the region. If convinced that the water problem would be resolved, then Woolf should move quickly to purchase more land which was currently available at distressed prices. Yet some board members questioned the logic of additional investment in the region whose resources were so uncertain and wondered whether it was more prudent to pursue growth elsewhere. At the same time, some of Woolf's owners began to believe that more of the company's resources should be prioritized for dividends and other distributions as opposed to purely growth. What, if anything, could Woolf and other farmers do to influence the outcome?

Learning Objective: To understand the criticality of water for agriculture.

Suggested Citation

Winig, Laura and Shelman, Mary L., Woolf Farming and Processing (March 8, 2010). Harvard Business School General Management Unit Case No. 510-033, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1997205

Laura Winig (Contact Author)

Harvard Business School, Global Research Group ( email )

Greenhill House
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
United States

Mary L. Shelman

Harvard University - Business School (HBS) ( email )

Soldiers Field Road
Morgan 270C
Boston, MA 02163
United States

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