ABSTRACT

Market reports, on the radio or in the farming press, are also valuable sources of information which the farmer has to consult. Although they deal with past events, he has to use facts as a guide to future conditions and so get some idea of what and when to sell. The information that a farmer acquires is fed into his own mental computer, and is then processed by his brain in accordance with his own personal program. Merchants and dealers, through their many contacts with other farmers, can often play a useful part along the agricultural ‘grapevine’, helping to pass on valuable information as to what is happening elsewhere. The advice from merchants or dealers, the buyers of the farmer’s produce, must always be influenced by the chances of personal profit. The extent to which the government-paid adviser is influenced by political policies will vary from country to country, which can range from simple advice to imperative directions.