Grower Contracts
Production contracts with growers of crops and livestock have become common in recent years. This has resulted from the movement away from commodity production to the emergence of specialty agricultural products. It has also been driven by the trend towards an integrated supply chain in agriculture.
The use of production contracts creates a new set of issues for growers to examine and resolve. Specialty Markets Bring Different Risk Management Needs provides an examination of some of these issues that growers need to examine.
For more information on this topic, see the links listed below of articles posted on related Web sites.
Production Contracts
- Agricultural Production Contracts – University of Minnesota Extension -- This publication covers legal considerations involved in agricultural production contracts.
- Contract Growing: Is it for You? -- Rutgers Cooperative Extension – Large producers are expanding by vertical integration and Mergers. Some of the large producers are offering contracts to other producers to grow products.
- Risk Management Toolkit of Specialty Crop Producers – University of Minnesota Extension.
- State Regulation of Production Contracts – National Ag Law Center -- This article collects and briefly analyzes existing state laws– from Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin – that directly regulate production contracts.
Livestock Contracts
- Livestock Production Contracts – FLAG -- Checklist of Important Considerations.
- Livestock Production Contract Checklist – Iowa State University -- Educational tool for producers considering a livestock production contract.
Grain Contracts
- Specialty Grain Contract Production – Farm Foundation -- Checklist of Important Considerations.
- Grain Production Contract Checklist – Iowa State University -- Educational tool for producers considering a production contract involving grain.
- Specialty Crop Contracts – North Dakota State University -- This publication outlines advantages and disadvantages of specialty crop contracts and offers sample contracts.
- Legal Issues in Producing Corn and Soybeans under Selected Contractual Arrangements – Iowa State University -- Four general types of contracts may be used for grain production.
Other Contracts
- Farmer's Use of Marketing and Production Contracts – USDA -- Checklist of Important Considerations.
- Managing Risk with an Alfalfa Production Contract – North Dakota State University -- Production contracts may be used to reduce the risk associated with marketing alfalfa or other hay production.
