Table of contents

    1. Seven Steps to Better Marketing
    2. Understanding supply factors for agricultural products
    3. How demand and supply determine market price
    4. How exchange rates affect agricultural markets
    5. How interest rates affect agricultural markets
    6. How to use charting to analyse commodity markets
    7. Agriculture marketing clubs
    8. Commodity futures markets
    1. Economics and Marketing – Choosing a Commodity Broker
    2. Margin on futures contracts
    3. Options on futures – an introduction
    4. Using hedging to protect farm product prices
    5. Canola futures contract
    1. Introduction to crop marketing
    2. Basis – How cash grain prices are established
    3. Grain marketing decision grid
    4. Price pooling – How it works
    5. Crop contracts
    6. Grain storage as a marketing strategy
    7. Using producer cars to ship prairie grain
    8. Using frequency charts for marketing decisions
    9. Western Canadian grain catchment
    10. Barley and wheat marketing resources
    11. Wheat basis levels
    12. Wheat quality and protein matters
    13. Wheat pricing considerations
    14. Marketing oats in Canada
    15. US Crops – Where Are They Grown?
    1. Introduction to livestock marketing
    2. Understanding and using basis levels in cattle markets
    3. Forward contracting of cattle
    4. Understanding dressing percentage of slaughter cattle
    5. Understanding the cattle market sliding scale
    6. Predicting feeder cattle prices
    7. Breakeven analysis for feeder cattle
    8. Farm gate values for farm-raised vs purchased calves
    9. Wool marketing in Canada
    10. Marketing feeder lambs
    1. Turf and forage seed trade companies active in the Peace Region
    2. History of creeping red fescue production in the Peace River Region
    3. Alfalfa seed marketing in Canada
    4. Forage seed marketing
    5. Marketing creeping red fescue
    6. Faba bean
    7. Marketing compressed hay
    1. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – A, B
    2. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – C
    3. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – D, E
    4. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – F, G
    5. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – H, I, J, K
    6. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – L, M
    7. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – N, O
    8. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – P, Q, R
    9. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – S
    10. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – T, U
    11. Agricultural Marketing Glossary – V, W
    12. Other Marketing Related Glossaries

V

Vertical Integration - The degree to which a firm owns or controls enterprises either above or below its current position in the marketing chain. For example, a packer, which owns a cow-calf operation and a feedlot is vertically integrated in the beef industry.

Visible Supply - The total supplies of a particular commodity "in sight" in all commercial facilities including warehouses, terminals, elevators, and processors or inventory in shipment from any of these. It is considered "visible" since the amount can be accurately measured by regular voluntary or compulsory reporting of all owners.

Volume or Volume of Trading - The total purchases or sales of commodity futures or options contracts during a specific period, usually a trading day, a month or a year. Since the number of "buys" equals the number of "sells," only one or the other is shown in published volume reports.

W

Warehouse Receipt - A legal document issued by a warehouse or elevator describing and guaranteeing the existence of a specific quantity and grade of a commodity in the warehouse or elevator.

Weak Hands

  • When used to describe delivery of commodities on futures contracts, "weak hands" usually means receivers of the commodities do not intend to retain ownership of the commodity.
  • When used to describe futures positions, "weak hands" usually means positions held by small speculators.
  • Opposite to "strong hands."

Weekly Continuation Chart – A futures price chart similar to a daily continuation chart except that each vertical bar represents the weekly high, low and closing price instead of the daily high, low and closing price.

Writer – The issuer, seller or underwriter of a put or call option

World Trade Organization (WTO) – The only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between countries including the GATT. Basically, the WTO is an organization where member country's governments meet to try to solve trade problems with each other. The WHO is located in Geneva, Switzerland.