Dr. Michael Seipel
3082 Magruder Hall
785-4316 (Office)
mseipel@truman.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION
An introductory course examining the production, handling, and marketing of agricultural products. Investigates changing patterns of food consumption and analyzes the causes and consequences of the changes. Focus is placed on understanding the market structures ordering the flow of food and fiber goods from the producer to the consumer and the economic principles underlying these structures.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
- To develop the student’s understanding of the structure of the food and fiber system—its production and handling stages, pricing system, and competitive environment;
- To enable students to critically analyze changes in the food and fiber system, their causes, and their consequences for farmers, consumers, processors, and marketers;
- To illustrate how economic principles can be used to better understand producer and consumer decision-making and resource allocation within the farm-food-fiber system;
- To build the student’s communication, problem-solving, and team-working abilities through group activities and oral and written presentation of ideas and concepts
Richard L. Kohls and Joseph N. Uhl. Marketing of Agricultural Products. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 9th edition, 2002.
BASIS OF STUDENT EVALUATION
| Item | Points Possible |
| In-class exams (3, 100 points each) | 300 |
| Comprehensive final exam | 150 |
| Team projects (5, 20 points each) | 100 |
| Homework exercises | 100 |
| Attendance and participation | 50 |
COURSE OUTLINE
| Topic | Readings | Class periods |
| Introduction to course; overview of food and agricultural systems | Chapter 1 | 4 |
| "You are what you eat": U.S. food consumption patterns and marketing implications | Chapter 4, handouts | 4 |
| Economic concepts: demand, supply and market equilibrium; using supply/demand analysis to understand changes in output and consumption | Handouts | 6 |
| Economic concepts (continued): Price analysis; cost concepts; profit maximization | Chapter 8 | 2 |
| Market structure, forms of competition | Chapter 9 | 2 |
| Farm and food prices | Chapter 10 | 2 |
| Food marketing costs — the "marketing bill" | Chapter 11 | 2 |
| Food processing and manufacturing | Chapter 5 | 2 |
| Wholesaling, retailing, and food service | Chapter 6 | 2 |
| Food system issues, trends, and changes | 12 | 2 |
| Consumer protection | Chapter 17 | 4 |
| Transportation and storage | Chapters 18, 19 | 1 |
| Basics of financial statements | Handouts | 3 |
| Student selections from the following topics: introduction to commodity futures markets, livestock and meat marketing, grain marketing, fruit and vegetable marketing | Respectively, Chapters 20, 23, 26, 29 | 2 |