Co-operative member deliveries recorded in one system, input purchases in another, and member account settlements calculated manually in a spreadsheet because no off-the-shelf ERP understands pooled commodity accounting?
Farm enterprise gross margins that take two weeks to produce at year end because the cost allocation from the farm management record to the financial system has to be done manually?
Agricultural ERP and Operations Management Software
Custom agricultural ERP for farming companies, co-operatives, and agri-input suppliers who need farm management, member accounting, procurement, sales, and financial reporting connected in one system rather than maintained across separate platforms that require manual bridging.
Generic ERP systems model manufacturing or distribution businesses. Agricultural operations have different structures -- co-operative pooling, seasonal input purchasing, commodity contracts with deferred pricing, and farm enterprise accounting that doesn't map to standard chart of accounts templates. We build the ERP around how agricultural businesses actually operate.
Integrated farm management and financial reporting with cost of production allocated to each enterprise automatically
Co-operative member account management with pooled commodity receipts, input purchases, and settlement calculation
Procurement and inventory management for agri-input suppliers with purchase orders, stock control, and sales invoicing
Commodity sales management with forward contracts, deferred pricing, and margin reporting
RaftLabs builds custom agricultural ERP software for farming companies, agricultural co-operatives, and agri-input suppliers. The platform integrates farm management, co-operative member account management, procurement and inventory, commodity sales management, and financial reporting in one connected system. Most agricultural ERP projects deliver an initial production-ready module in 12 to 20 weeks at a fixed, agreed cost.
100+Products shipped
·24+Industries served
·FixedCost delivery
·12-16Week delivery cycles
When agricultural operations need an ERP built around how they actually run
Agricultural businesses have financial and operational structures that generic ERP systems don't model well. A grain marketing co-operative pools member deliveries into lots, sells them on the open or futures market, and distributes the net proceeds back to members after deducting input charges, haulage, and storage costs. A farming company allocates seed, fertiliser, chemical, and machinery costs to each field and crop, then calculates the gross margin per enterprise at harvest. An agri-input merchant manages seasonal input purchasing, stockholding across multiple depots, and credit sales to farm customers with seasonal settlement tied to harvest receipts. Each of these requires a different data model, and none of them maps cleanly to the manufacturing or distribution model that standard ERP systems were built for.
We build agricultural ERP systems around the specific business model of the operation -- the entity structure, the commodity accounting, the member account management for co-operatives, and the enterprise cost allocation for farming companies. We have built ERP and operational management systems for complex multi-entity businesses. We understand the financial reporting requirements and the operational workflows of agricultural businesses and the accountants who serve them.
What we build
Farm enterprise accounting
Farm enterprise cost allocation from the field activity and input purchase records to each crop enterprise, so the gross margin calculation at harvest uses actual field costs rather than budget estimates. Variable cost of production per tonne and per hectare calculated for each crop variety and each field block from the labour, machinery, and input costs recorded in the farm management system. Fixed cost allocation to each enterprise using the allocation methodology appropriate for your farm's cost structure -- area-based, revenue-based, or a defined fixed cost per enterprise. Enterprise gross margin report produced automatically from the field record and the cost allocation at the end of each season without manual assembly from separate systems. Benchmarking of enterprise performance against previous seasons and against external benchmarks where the farm operator participates in a benchmarking group.
Co-operative member account management
Member delivery intake with weight, grade, variety, and quality data recorded at the point of receipt and posted to the member's account. Pool lot management with member deliveries allocated to pool lots by grade and variety, the pool lot managed through storage, sale, and final settlement as one unit. Input purchase on member account for co-operatives that supply seed, fertiliser, and crop protection products to members, with input charges posted to the member account at the point of delivery. Member account statement at any point in the season showing deliveries credited, input charges debited, and the net balance pending final settlement. Pool settlement calculation when the pool lot is sold -- the net pool price after deduction of storage, handling, drying, and selling costs distributed to each member in proportion to their delivery contribution. Member statement and remittance at settlement with the full calculation visible to the member.
Procurement and input inventory
Purchase order management for input procurement -- seed, fertiliser, chemicals, fuel, and parts -- with the order, supplier acknowledgement, goods receipt, and invoice matching managed in one workflow. Depot inventory management for agri-input merchants and co-operatives with multiple depot locations, tracking stock levels, lot numbers, and expiry dates for agrochemicals and treated seed. Stock transfer between depots with cost transfer and inventory update applied to both locations at the time of transfer. Reorder point management with alerts when stock falls below the configured minimum and a suggested purchase order generated for the procurement team. Input cost allocation from the inventory to the farm record at the point of issue, maintaining the cost link from procurement through to field use for enterprise gross margin calculation.
Commodity sales and contract management
Sales contract management for farm businesses and merchants selling grain, oilseeds, and other commodities -- forward contracts with fixed price, basis price, or pool price captured at the time of sale with the delivery period and quantity recorded. Contract performance tracking with the quantity delivered against each contract and the outstanding volume flagged for the sales team as the delivery period approaches. Deferred pricing contract management for pool selling arrangements where the price is not fixed at the time of delivery -- the delivery is posted to the pool and the price confirmed when the pool lot is eventually sold. Invoice generation from confirmed deliveries with the applicable price, any quality adjustment, and the applicable payment terms applied automatically. Credit management for merchant sales with customer credit limits, payment terms, and overdue balance reporting for the debtor management team.
Financial reporting and management accounts
Management accounts produced from the integrated operational data without manual data assembly -- the purchase costs from procurement, the sales revenue from the commodity sales module, and the cost allocation from the farm management system all feeding into the financial report automatically. VAT and sales tax reporting configured for the relevant jurisdiction with the agricultural-specific VAT rules applied to the transaction categories used in agricultural businesses. Bank reconciliation with direct feed from the bank statement and automatic matching against the cash book entries generated from procurement invoices and sales receipts. Year-end accounts preparation with trial balance, profit and loss by enterprise or division, and balance sheet produced from the operational data for submission to the accountant. Integration with external accounting platforms where the operation uses a separate accounting system -- Xero, Sage, or QuickBooks -- for the statutory accounts while the agricultural ERP handles the operational management accounts.
Multi-entity and group reporting
Multi-entity management for farming groups and co-operatives with multiple legal entities under common management, with each entity's operational and financial data maintained separately and consolidated for group reporting. Inter-entity transactions -- land rent, machinery hire, grain transfers between group entities -- managed with the appropriate accounting treatment applied and intercompany balances visible for group accounts preparation. Group profit and loss and balance sheet with entity-level detail and group consolidation, produced from the same operational data that generates each entity's individual accounts. Minority interest and joint venture accounting for group structures that include associates or jointly managed operations. Performance comparison across entities within the group for management review of relative performance and for resource allocation decisions across the farming group.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, and this combination is one of the primary reasons co-operatives commission custom ERP rather than using off-the-shelf systems. Pool accounting requires a data model where member deliveries are received, allocated to lots, managed through storage and sale, and settled to member accounts -- a fundamentally different structure from a standard debtor-creditor accounting model. The farm management module tracks the operational activity and cost allocation for the co-operative's own farming operations or for the agronomic service it provides to members. The pool accounting module manages the commodity flow from member intake through to settlement. Both modules share the same financial foundation so the management accounts reflect the complete business without manual data transfer between separate systems.
Deferred pricing and forward contracts are standard transaction types in the sales module. A deferred pricing contract records the delivery of grain at an unpriced basis -- the delivery is posted to the member's or seller's account as an unpriced lot, and the price is confirmed when the pricing instruction is given or the pool lot is sold. Forward contracts capture the agreed quantity, price, and delivery period at the time of sale, with the delivery performance tracked as loads are confirmed against the contract. Basis contracts record the futures price month and the agreed basis at the time of sale, with the final price calculated when the relevant futures price is fixed. All contract types generate the appropriate accounting entries when deliveries are confirmed and pricing is applied, without manual journal entries.
Yes. Grain store intake and outload records are a primary data source for the commodity accounting module. We integrate with weighbridge systems via the standard data export formats they produce -- most weighbridge controllers generate a transaction file at each weighing event in CSV, XML, or a proprietary format. We build the integration to read that file and create the intake or outload record automatically in the ERP, reducing manual data entry at the grain store and ensuring the inventory and member account records are updated in real time. For grain store management systems with their own WMS functionality -- temperature monitoring, lot management, and fumigation records -- we integrate at the lot level so the grain store system and the ERP share a single lot identity that avoids duplication of lot data between systems.
An agricultural ERP module covering farm enterprise accounting with cost allocation from field records, and basic procurement and financial reporting for a single entity, typically runs $55,000 to $95,000. A full system covering co-operative member accounting, pool management, commodity sales contracts, multi-depot inventory, and multi-entity group reporting typically runs $130,000 to $250,000 depending on the number of entities, members, and the complexity of the commodity accounting model. We scope every project before pricing it so you know the exact scope and cost before development starts. We don't do hourly billing -- fixed project costs only, with working software delivered at each milestone.
Tell us your entity structure, whether you operate a co-operative or farming company, your current systems, and the integration or reporting gaps you need to close. We'll scope the right system.
