DESPITE lingering global finance jitters, the big banks say they still have plenty of money to lend to their valued agricultural client base, but farmers will have to work smarter to get access to it.
For farmers to stay on good terms with the bank manager they will need to consult closely and regularly with their lending institutions and be more astute about getting a good bang from their cashflow bucks.
"The money market is imposing higher standards on capital and I think that pressure is being reflected in the credit standards and expectations of lenders," said Rabobank's State manager for northern NSW, Graham Yeo.
"But people in rural communities are imposing stricter standards on themselves, too.
"Farmers are taking more time and a more considered approach to expanding and borrowing - they want to see a worthwhile return."
However, while a new era of lending caution has washed through the banking industry, Commonwealth Bank's agribusiness executive general manager, Brendan White, insisted there was no pressure on farmers to "rush into the bank and pay off all your debt".
Nor were there signs of an underclass of farmers being denied loan funds because they did not run big enterprises or were not flush with cashflow.
"We want all farmers to keep investing in their businesses," he said.
"We should be able to assist anybody to become a well managed financial planner.
"It makes sense that agriculture invests in itself and is well prepared to take advantage of the business fundamentals - population growth, rising demand for food and the rising middle class consumer markets in Asia and the Middle East."
In fact, the Commonwealth's enthusiasm for agricultural lending saw it increase funding to regional borrowers by 15 per cent last year (partly at the expense of smaller banks reducing their lending activity).
Mr White agreed, however, that "more rigour and prudence" were required as part of the bank's lending criteria.
"We try to understand farmer clients' strategic business plans, and work with them very early in the planning process, including offering our resources to help them understand their cashflow," he said.
"We want clients with sustainable farm debt levels and sustainable operations.
"To do that we'll provide support when they need help to manage their debt position or take advantage of opportunities to expand."
The past decade of tough seasons and roller coaster markets has generally made farmers better business operators, according to National Australia Bank's regional agribusiness manager for northern NSW, Shane Dowton in Tamworth.
He said farmers were not just better educated about financial management, but also more comfortable seeking outside help from banks or other advisors who could help them plan for today's sophisticated commodity and money markets.
"A new generation of younger, tertiary educated 30- to 45-year-old farmers is taking over and they've had plenty of experience with agriculture's cycles in recent years," he said.
"Debt is being used fairly carefully and the viability of their business is monitored closely."
However, despite their soothing assurances, banks now seemed much tougher on farmers with less than 60pc equity in their businesses, according to rural accountant with Queensland firm, BMO Accountants, Adrian Rasmussen, at Dalby.
Mr Rasmussen, whose clients spread from Toowoomba to Roma and Taroom on the Maranoa, said lending had become more selective, giving preference to farms with good equity.
"Banks want to see cashflow," he said.
Much of the caution appeared to be stemming from a concern that some property values were over-inflated and previous loan strategies relied too much on the farm's land valuation protecting the viability of the loan.
"In the past year much more attention is being focused on earnings and getting plenty of turnover from a farm to ensure it pays for itself.
"I do agree, however, more farmers are better at managing their debt these days. They're younger and thinking differently about how to spend money to achieve more efficiencies."
The Commonwealth's Mr White conceded the tighter and more costly global capital climate was a challenge for all banks since the global financial crisis - even Australia's strong "big four" AA-rated lenders.
The Commonwealth's emphasis was therefore on lending to, and developing, "high quality credit clients".
But Rabobank's Mr Yeo said there was still no shortage of farmers making loan applications or getting them approved, and Australia was still considered a "very sound investment for agricultural lending".
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