MARKETING PRACTICES AND MARKET CHANNEL UTILIZATION BY MISSISSIPPI SOYBEAN PRODUCERS

This paper examines current marketing practices by Mississippi soybean producers as well as willingness to participate in a marketing cooperative and willingness to plant Identity Preserved soybeans. In general, most Mississippi soybean producers utilize cash sales at harvest or forward contracting as primary marketing tools. Use of futures and options is found to increase with farm size. Willingness to participate in a marketing cooperative (pool) is found to be effected by use of cash sales at harvest as a primary marketing tool, money spent on gathering marketing information, previous experience with marketing pools, and age of the respondent. Willingness to plant Identity Preserved soybeans is directly related to offered premiums.