AD3CMM: Cereal Management and Marketing

Module code: AD3CMM

Module provider: School of Agriculture, Policy and Development

Credits: 20

Level: Level 3 (Honours)

When you'll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Dr Paola Tosi, email: p.tosi@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s): BEFORE TAKING THIS MODULE YOU MUST TAKE AD2CAY OR TAKE AP2A66 (Compulsory)

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 20 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

For the student to become familiar with the principles and practices of growing, assessing and selling cereal crops for different markets.

To enable students to evaluate the effects of genotype, agronomy and environment on the yield and quality of small-grained cereals and determine their impact on end-use, marketing  and financial margins.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to: 

1. assess a field experiment: they will be able to evaluate the effects of genotype, agronomy and environment on the yield and quality of small-grained cereals. 
2. evaluate the consequences of cereal crop management on financial margins. 
3. understand the grain characteristics which determine the suitability of cereal grain for different markets and be aware of the different ways of marketing grain from the farm.  
4. gain an understanding of how and why grain prices fluctuate for different markets over time 

Module content

The effects of genotype, agronomy and environment on the yield and quality of small-grained cereals will be reviewed in terms of production, financial and environmental objectives. 

Outline of the cereal market will be presented. 

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

Pairs of students will be give grain from wheat plots grown at Sonning farm on the previous crop year in a field experiment investigating various agronomic inputs on yield and quality (AP2A66 wheat growing exercise). The students will evaluate the yield and quality of the assigned grain by doing tests of moisture content, purity, thousand grain weight, specific weight, germination, grain protein concentration, Hagberg falling number SDS-sedimentation volume and black point, which will be carried out during laboratory practicals at Sonning farm.  

Lectures and guided reading will be used to enable the students to understand their results on the bases of  treatment, site and climatic effects. Once the students have evaluated the quality of their grain they will have to market it in a simulated selling exercise. This will require students to make decisions about the worth of their grain, when to sell it, and to convince others of its worth. A written report and oral presentation will require students to explain how the crop was grown with an explanation how crop choice, management and selling decisions could have been improved.  

The report will also include statistical and gross margin ana lyses, explanations of the relevance of different grain characteristics for different markets and suggestions for alterations to crop agronomy to achieve multiple objectives. Key references will be available via the Blackboard course. 

Study hours

At least 40 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Submission of yield calculation and direct costs computation. 

Reassessment

Additional costs