Managing your cash flow is hard enough. Doing business with your grain buyer shouldn’t be.
Managing your cash flow is hard enough. Doing business with your grain buyer shouldn’t be.
- Back to Top
- Make a Cash Sale
- Get Cash a Smarter Way
- Consider Forward Marketing
- Talk Things Over
Make a Cash Sale
You know your farm operation best and when you need operating capital. We’re here for you when you need to make a cash sale.
Know When to Sell
Follow seasoned grain marketers as they give you week-by-week guidance for your decisions.
Deliver Your Grain
Short on time? Check unload times before you leave home with the ADM Wait Time app (at select locations).
Improve Your Odds in 4 Steps
Every year—no matter what the markets or weather bring—these habits make a real difference.
1. Get Crop Insurance
Think of insurance as a safety net that allows you to forward sell when it makes sense.
2. Set Price Targets
Aim to meet cost of production + fixed costs + profit margin. Track profitability using financial software.
3. Personalize a Plan
Plan around seasonal trends and cash needs with marketing strategies that meet your goals.
4. Stay Disciplined
Set “sell-by” dates for portions of your projected yield. Work to spread risk and lock in margins as you go.
Pro Tip
Typically, markets are higher early in the crop year and decline toward harvest. Consider February-June for opportunities in corn and May-August for soybeans.
Get Cash a Smarter Way
Sell cash grain but stick to your bigger marketing plan.
Use Upside Contracts
Some ADM contracts pay a portion of your proceeds upfront, with potential for more if markets go higher.
Use Offers
Read some helpful do’s and don’ts from ADM’s Matthew Kroes on using offers.
Consider Forward Marketing
Cash sales may feel secure, but some forward marketing can help reduce your price risk.
Pro Tip
“Sometimes we have to market out of necessity. A lot of us coast into harvest on fumes. But we want to get away from that as much as possible.” – Matt Bennett, Producer and Consultant
Pro Tip
Historically, February-June futures prices for corn outperform harvest prices 80% of the time. Marketing early takes advantage of these odds.
I work with a producer who uses price targets, and whenever we get there, he continues to sell. He’s able to protect himself, but also participate in the upside through close communication with me.
Jim Sibbel, ADM Representative
Pro Tip
If you’re worried about committing to a forward price, you can add a floor price or upside opportunity into many of our contracts.
Pro Tip
Be consistent with forward marketing. Exceptional years like 2012 will happen, but most years, locking in some pre-harvest sales has proven to be exactly the right move.
Photo: Hayden Sholtis, Grain Origination Specialist
Talk Things Over
You may only know us as the folks who empty trucks and send checks. But there’s a lot more to your ADM team: Knowledge, guidance, and a variety of tools to help you be a better marketer of your crops.
Call on us to discuss
- Pricing strategies
- Cash flow needs
- Storage concerns
- Capturing market opportunities
- Price protection
- How to use crop insurance
- Marketing terms and methods
- Annual grain marketing planning
- Managing fertilizer cost risk
