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Crop Outlook and Management Strategy

July 1, 2015

Recorded July 1, 2015 | A review of the fundamental drivers of crop prices and updated management recommendations in light of shifting crop conditions.

Pork Industry Continues to Adjust from PED

June 13, 2015

The pork industry continues to adjust from the supply shock created by the PED virus last year. Live prices peaked in the summer of 2014 as PED losses mounted and then fell into the late winter of 2015.

Strategic Positioning: Focus vs. Flexibility

June 1, 2015

The mantra of almost all strategic planning discussions and recommendations is that a company cannot be all things to all people – – it must be focused in its choice of customers and how it will create value for those customers.

Strategic Decisions: You Can’t Always Be Right

June 1, 2015

No matter how well informed you are, how careful you have been in specifying the problem, how much data and information you have collected, how systematic you have been in the decision process, it is possible you will make a mistake – a wrong choice.

Managing in Turbulent Times: Positioning to Capture the Upside, Buffer the Downside

June 1, 2015

Risk dominates the farming sector, and most farmers try to reduce or manage/mitigate the risks they take. Risk is perceived by most to be “bad” – – something to be avoided.

Beef Industry Traveling to a Different Drummer This Year

May 13, 2015

The beef industry stands alone in 2015 in its continued reduction in supplies available to consumers. The year of 2014 was a special year for the animal production industries with record high farm level prices for cattle, hogs, broilers, turkeys, milk and eggs.

More Hogs than Expected, Mystery Continues

April 13, 2015

More hogs than expected was the theme of the pork market in the first quarter of 2015. The USDA March Hogs and Pigs report did little to help explain why hog numbers were high, other than to simply admit that hog inventory counts from previous surveys were too low.

It’s Not Just About Costs per Acre, Even in Tight Times

April 6, 2015

The current climate of low crop commodity prices is squeezing margins. Some margins might even be negative if crop producers continue with current costs. As a result, crop producers might focus more intensely than usual on managing costs of production.

Spring 2015 Crop Outlook

April 1, 2015

Recorded April 1, 2015 | Corn and soybean crop price outlook for 2015. A review of the updated crop outlook, following the release of USDA’s March Prospective Plantings and Grain Stocks reports, and discuss marketing strategies for the 2014 and 2015 crops.

2015 Crop Insurance Decisions

March 2, 2015

Recorded March 2, 2015 | A review and analyst of 2015 crop insurance choices. Included are a review of the “natural hedge’, available crop insurance products, 2015 price guarantees, coverage levels, and a case farm that illustrates cost of various insurance products in White Co. Indiana.