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At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:
1. Explain how economic principles relate to agribusiness management.
2. Discuss the processes and resources for establishing an agribusiness.
3. Describe the sectors in the agribusiness in the agribusiness food system.
4. Discuss the components of a business plan.
5. Identify and describe the types of agriculture business organizations.
6. Explain the four functions of management in agribusiness.
7. Explain a basic financial statement.
8. Develop a Pro Forma for a new business.
9. Perform basic financial statement analysis.
10. Recognize, evaluate, and propose solutions to problems in personnel, ethics, and communication.
11. Analyze the components of a successful human resources management plan.
12. Explain trends in agribusiness in Sonoma County and the United States.
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I. Introduction to Agribusiness
A. Overview of the agribusiness industry
B. Agribusiness in California, United States, and the global economy
C. Organization of agribusiness
D. Trends in agribusiness
II. Structure and Organization of Agribusiness
A. Structure of agribusiness organizations
B. Types of agribusiness organizations
1. Sole proprietorship
2. Partnership
3. Corporation
C. Managing agribusiness organizations
III. Management
A. Planning
B. Leading
C. Organizing
D. Controlling
IV. Managerial Problem Solving in Agriculture
A. Financial analysis and problem solving
B. Diagnosis of the situation
C. Generating alternatives
D. Evaluating alternatives
E. Selecting the best alternatives
F. Implementing alternatives
G. Evaluating results
V. Financial Management and Control in Agribusiness
A. General business economics
B. Budgeting and financial planning
C. Overview of financial statements
D. Financial statement analysis
E. Uses of financial analysis
VI. Human Resource Management
A. The role of the agriculture manager
B. Human resource planning
C. Training and managing employees
D. Employee appraisal and motivation
E. Teams and teambuilding
F. Labor relations
G. Challenges in human resource management in agriculture
VII. Business Law and Ethics in Agriculture
A. Agriculture values
B. Agriculture business ethics
C. Personal values
D. Agriculture law and the regulatory environment
E. Regulatory agencies and standards
VIII. Agribusiness Plans
A. Marketing plan components
B. Sales plan components
C. Business plan components
D. Role of marketing, sales, and business plans in agribusiness
IX. Contemporary Issues in Food Agriculture Business
A. Specialization and integration
B. Marketing bill, food bill and farm income
C. Consumer demand and agribusiness
D. Food pricing and consumer demand
E. Production costs and decision-making
X. Forecasting in Agribusiness
A. Basics of forecasting
B. Forecasting procedures
C. Using forecasts in agribusiness
XI. Establishing an Agribusiness
A. Factors of production
B. Mission and vision
C. Business registration
D. Funding sources for agriculture businesses
E. Business Pro Forma
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1. Weekly reading (25 -30 pages)
2. One research paper on (3-5 pages) on topics such as:
A. Sonoma County agribusiness
B. Farming systems and agribusiness in California
C. California water
D. Agricultural trade
E. Ethics and labor issues in agribusiness
3. Financial analysis problem sets (2)
4. Business Pro Forma (1)
5. Weekly agribusiness case studies
6. Personal Portfolio
7. Virtual Funding Resource binder
8. Midterms (2) and Final Exam
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Agribusiness Management. 6th ed. Barnard, Freddie L., Foltz, John; Yeager, Elizabeth, L; Brewer, Brady. Routledge. 2020
Principles of Agribusiness Management. 5th ed. Beierlein, James and Schneeberger, Kenneth and Osborn, Donald. Waveland Press. 2013 (Classic)