Welcome to the Agricultural Marketing Web Site!

Marketing can be defined as the commercial functions involved in transferring goods from producer to consumer. Marketing is not just the final transaction of receiving a check. The acts of buying supplies, renting equipment, paying labor, advertising, processing and selling are all part of a marketing plan. Marketing should begin as the first ideas for an enterprise start to bubble. Some say marketing is everything a business does, that it is the most important aspect of any business, and the only action that results in revenue.

Agricultural marketing is the where the producer, the processor, the distributor and the consumer meet.

Please note: there is a link for a "Text Only" version at the bottom left of each
       web page.

Other Information and Related Links:

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  “Are benchmarks available to manage my retail farm market business?

Skills used for marketing of our abundant agricultural production continue to increase in economic importance. Producers marketing directly to consumers are capturing a larger percent of consumer disposable income.

As the pressures from increased land competition, labor demand, consumer expectations and farm family requirements continue to escalate, the opportunities available from using a more fully developed retail marketing channel offer increasing possibilities. These possibilities will serve to enhance the viability of agriculture by expanding the scope of farm enterprises, and to directly link farm products to consumer retail markets.

Detailed planning and analysis are required for business start up, management and growth. Market managers often ask how they can measure their business in terms of potential for growth or expansion. There is very limited information available that gives some direction to these critical business management decisions. To start addressing these needs a research project has begun that will identify and then summarize the retail farm market benchmarks. The idea is to develop some guidelines for those interested in starting, maintaining, or growing a retail farm market.

Please, consider being a full benchmark survey participant by completing and returning the requested information.” Click here to download the survey (PDF).

• PSU Beginning Farmer Course
  
  
• Guidance on record keeping if soybean rust affects your yields and you submit a loss claim. (PDF)
  
  
• Who Gets My Food Dollar?
  
  
• Click here to complete our web survey and let us know why you visited our site.
  
  
• The Guide for Security Practices in Transporting Agricultural and Food Commodities (PDF): http://www.usda.gov/homelandsecurity/aftcsecurguidfinal19.pdf
  
  
• USDA Homeland Security: http://www.usda.gov/homelandsecurity/