Brokerage for futures/options

[jethro456]

Just wondering what web based brokerage everyone uses. There are quite a few to choose from so just looking for opinions.
What I want to do is mainly canola and cattle futures and options trading. Do they all offer the same kind of things for close to the same prices?

[silverback]

Come on man, you are getting crushed by the evil multinationals and cannot be trusted to try and market your own grain from your own farm. Don't kid yourself, any day now the ADM's of the world are going to swoop in and take over your farm, and once they do they will take over the rest of us.

You would be much better to only plant CWB approved grains and let the good folks at 423 Main market them for you and give you what is left - after marketing expenses of course.

[furrowtickler]

No doubt JD, I would guess it is about the same percentage on most farms in western canada.

[ry0972]

0% here the last 5 years!!! Might have 3500 bushels of Malt barley this year of 50 acres that I mudded in. Had to get a d@mn permit book to submit sample!!
It might go for feed anyway "just for the principle " of it.
If only them F'rs at Big Sky hadn't screwed so many over.
They are the closest feed user and are "offering" decent $$, just gotta hope they PAY!!!
Anyone know if they are still paying the .40 -.50 premium to the guys they ripped off last year???

[Hopperbin]

Was at SWP today guess cwb supporters would refer to them as a bad multinational these days. I wanted a price on 5440 canola seed. They could not give me one yet, they had a bid in trying to bring the price down for us farmers at the moment not accepted. Bad SWP Bad. Shouldn't they just be putting the price up so us sheep could just be ourselves?

[nakodo]

If you have malt please deliver it and help keep a maltster alive. Also that means less barley into the domestic feed market so should drive up prices there too :-)

[parsley]

0% to the CWB
For at least 15 years. Pars

[ado089]

I go throught RBC but it's not online and likely not cheap but I only make a half dozens trades per year.

Opening a futures account is alot more work, hoops to jump through than a stock accout. It takes financials a $10,000 cheque and 250k net worth.

[Klause]

If you can't market your own product, quit farming.

That's my idea...

I don't see a CGB (Canadian Gold Board), or a COB
(Canadian Oil Board)... or actually a CCB (Canadian
Canola Board).

On my farm, 0% is going thru the CWB. I grew soft
white wheat for the ethanol industry instead. Will be
doing the same next year.

That is, unless pioneer actually calls me back about
their 895CL program... then it would be 60-40
CWSWS/CWRS split

Oh yeah. Wheat looks like it will make up 20% of my
crop rotation.

[mustardman]

Don't forget that most farms only grow 1 crop that is thru cwb and probably 3 or 4 that are not. So here are mine for the past 4 years

2007 41 % cwb
2008 54 % cwb
2009 67% cwb
2010 27% cwb

And by the way Klause, the only farmers I know who actually "market their crop" are the hutterites who sell vegetables door to door...THE REST OF US just Take A PRICE -big difference

[Klause]

mustardman, if you go onto the open market, make a $1/tonne basis contract, then make a $550/tonne futures contract, and then on top of that buy a call option - I call that marketing your grain, or rather, one way of marketing your grain.

It is much the same as a gold producer markets their gold, or an oil company markets their crude.

Notice doing as above, you are not taking what the elevator gives you. You are locking in what they take (their cut = $1/tonne). You are then setting yourself a price, and then also guaranteeing that if it goes up you'll get more.

Or are ya one of the guys who thinks that the big bad elevator companies manipulate the Futures market?

[mustardman]

Klause - you are marketing in that situation on canola ,however pulse crops and other oilseeds mustard for example do not have other way but "price taking"

[parsley]

mussy,

You so underate yoursef and your peers.

Do you really not understand how valuable 'eye to eye' business is?

Do you really not understand how valuable the individual farmer is, in doing business with, in negotiating with, even state buyers?

They WANT to come to your farm, and do business.

You are the expert on your farm!

Banding together with a half dozen of like minded peers makes you a formidable seller, a unit that is real, and sound, and approachable and bloody accountable.

Farmers are very unique because they are wealth creators, RISK takers every time you sow a crop, but mainly because on the most part, they are very an exceptionally decent group of people.

And don't even know it. Pars

[parsley]

Lots of farmers market their crops, mussy. And do well.

[Choice2U]

I use Keith Ferley at RBC Dominion Securities. 1-866-820-9297. Paid $443.76 in commissions/fees in 2008 but netted $8,582.50. Paid $320.75 in commission/fees in 2009 and lost $2,861.25. Paid $379.66 in 2010 and have netted $8,540.54 to date. His "non-pushy" comments are well worth the $300 to $400 per year that I give him. I deal in 3 - 5 x 20 Mt. contracts so even if you're a bigger farmer and triple the size of decisions, the commissions are still worth it.