Global agricultural markets are being deregulated and prices are more volatile than ever before. German farmers' associations are therefore advising their members to
move to the futures market to reduce their risks. The associations are now offering the farmers seminars - how can German farmers secure their harvest? With hedges!American farmers have long been into hedging. They sell their harvests in advance, even though they could perhaps make a much bigger profit if they waited. The idea is that anything is better than nothing. Who knows how prices will develop? It was this same principle that later led to the so-called hedge funds on the financial markets. Now German farmers are to adopt similar methods. The seminars are well-attended. Of the country's 350,000 farmers, only 1 to 2 percent have ventured into hedging so far. That's not many, but it's a start. Five years ago, this instr