Farmers’ Buying and Selling Patterns
lmpllcations
for Cooperatives
Emerson M.
Babb,
Professor, Food and Resource Economics Department,University of Florida, under a cooperative research agreement with AgriculturalCooperative Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC.
Abstract
This research analyzes farm characteristics and other factors that affect thebuying and selling behavior of farmers. Information for 1986 was obtained byquestionnaires from 2,537 farmers in the Midwest and Southeast. The major
finding
of this study is that the buying and selling behavior of farmers does notvary greatly by size and type of farm. Cooperatives are almost as successful ingetting the business of large-farm operators as that of medium- and small-farmoperators. There are, however, some differences in types and sizes of farms thatprovide the basis of better service to farmers and increased patronage. Thesedifferences relate to goals, time devoted to the farm business, sources ofinformation used for farm decisions, types of services used, and opinions aboutcommodity marketing and purchases of inputs. The business implications of these
differences for cooperatives are described.
Key Words:
Cooperatives, farmer, purchasing, sales behavior, farm suppliesand services
ACS Research Report Number 73July 1988
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