Farmers need to go back to the basics to manage today’s markets, according to an economist

The markets have seen their share of ups and downs lately, making risk management all the more important.

One ag economist says all farmers need to go back to the basics.

“Let’s go back to some core basic strategies that we can pull out of the bag for our marketing plans. One of those is to recognize that, number one, you, as a farm manager, are not fast enough to chase the marketplace. Things are happening so quickly. The volatility is so high that you can’t chase the market, so the challenge is how do we try to get out in front of this?” said Frayne Olson.

Olson says farmers need to sit down and crunch the numbers, then decide what price they are willing to sell at.

“And a lot of that is based on your cost of production and the cost of storage. Those are things that you know and have much more direct control over.”

Olson adds that placing orders ahead of time can help you capitalize on acceptable prices, saying it helps avoid impulsive decisions during market volatility.

LATEST STORIES BY THIS AUTHOR:

It is in there, the mold — those rich blue veins in creamy blue cheese that make you either love it or loathe it — but how does it get there? This bonus scene from “Clemson Dairy,” Season 4, Episode 4 of Where the Food Comes From, explains how and why that happens.
No, it is not some new college course — Clemson has been making blue cheese since 1941, and the product has developed a worldwide following and won some pretty big awards. With good reason — it is fantastic stuff. It is also fascinating to see how it is made. Check out this sneak peek look at the latest episode of Where the Food Comes From, “Clemson Blue.”
The machines do all the work at Hickory Hill Milk in South Carolina, and the pampered cows get on-demand service. The team at Where the Food Comes From shares a special, behind-the-scenes account filming the show’s newest episode, Robot Dairy, premiering this Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at 9:30 p.m. ET on RFD-TV!