Managing the Margin

It wasn’t too long ago dairy producers were not concerned with much variation in milk price or feed cost. More recently, the significance of dramatic price moves has been experienced farms and in our farm community. Managing the Margin is a day-long educational workshop focusing on understanding the world around us, global commodity markets and price management tools and strategies available for our use when managing the risk of declining milk prices and the risk of increasing feed costs.

Managing margin risk has become increasingly significant for producers given enhanced volatility in commodity prices and input costs. While profits can be possible in today’s marketplace, producers must simultaneously manage milk revenue and input costs to maintain long-term profitable margins. The objective of this program is to provide producers with concepts and tools to determine breakeven prices, market strategies, and crop insurance decisions appropriate for their operations under various conditions with the end goal of being able to identify and capture profitable margins. Managing the Margin is one workshop useful for building long-term viability for a dairy enterprise.

Reference materials from this workshop include:
Click on a title to download it (PDF).

• Questions about basis? (11 pages)
• Milk futures and options contract specs (4 pages)
• Choosing the correct marketing tool (44 pages)
• Futures market basics (15 pages)

Return to the top.