How many of you are involved in agriculture everyday? How many of you wear clothes, eat everyday or live in some type of a shelter? Yes, we all do! Because of that fact we are all involved in agriculture on a daily basis, you just may never have realized this before! Agriculture provides the food and fiber for the clothes we wear and the homes we live in. Everyone is affected by agriculture everyday! Keep this in mind that we promote the agriculture industry in everything that we do! Distribute blank copy paper and crayons, markers etc. and work through the following instructions with the students. Divide your paper into quarters with your writing utensil. In the top left quarter draw something that represents production agriculture to you. Students should draw object. Label this section of your paper as ‘Production Agriculture.’ What percentage of the U.S. working population is involved in production agriculture? While many students will over exaggerate the numbers directly involved in agriculture. Keep students guessing until they eventually get to less than 2%. Have students write 2% in this quarter to remind them of the number of people in this sector of the profession. What happens after agriculture products are produced? Where do the products go from there? Get students to discuss that the next step in the production phases is to distribute the product. In your second quartile, draw an icon that represents distribution next in top corner and label it ‘distribution.’ Discuss the different icons that people drew to represent the distribution sector of the agriculture industry. After the agriculture product gets distributed, what happens next? Students should hopefully say that the agriculture products are then processed or manufactured somewhere. Agriculture products are further processed. Who can give me an example of this? Draw a representation of processing next in the bottom left corner and it ‘Agriculture Processing.’ We are still missing one gigantic sector of the agriculture industry that supports production, distribution and processing of our agriculture products. What are we leaving out that is integral in every other sector? What do producers need to be successful? What do distributors; processors and consumers need to be successful? What do producers need to grow their crops or raise their livestock? Can you imagine what this is? Try leading questions if necessary to get students to say that they we are missing a key component called Ag Businesses.
What To Produce? By custom – whatever was produced in the past The government decides what should be produced The government owns most of the means of production Consumer choices dictate the success of goods/services How to Produce? By custom – however items were produced in the past The government does the planning for production: factory locations, the occupations of workers and their salaries Business leaders choose the means of production Their goal is the most efficient and profitable methods For Whom To Produce? By custom – whoever usually received products will receive them The government controls the distribution system for goods/services: housing, transportation, consumer and sets prices The consumers’ income determines who receives which goods/services Business Organizational Structures