The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) today published amendments that change the financial reporting for bearer plants, such as grape vines, rubber trees and oil palms.
IAS 41 Agriculture currently requires all biological assets related to agricultural activity to be measured at fair value less costs to sell. This is based on the principle that the biological transformation that these assets undergo during their lifespan is best reflected by fair value measurement. However, there is a subset of biological assets, known as bearer plants, which are used solely to grow produce over several periods. At the end of their productive lives they are usually scrapped. Once a bearer plant is mature, apart from bearing produce, its biological transformation is no longer significant in generating future economic benefits. The only significant future economic benefits it generates come from the agricultural produce that it creates.
Read the full press release.