Sounds logical, and I would not put anything past the large grain houses. They are after all often the ones on the other side of the grain trade we farmers make when we sell. And I don't think guys like you and Ray get paid for paying us farmers more than you have to. Also, international grain companies have options in places around the world where we farmers are stuck in one spot (or within a few hundred miles) where we can transact business.

That is one reason I don't get very excited about making money hedging. Managing price risk, yes. Making money when someone on the other side of the trade is ten times smarter and has ten times the information I have? Not likely. Maybe I could outsmart a speculator or get lucky, but I doubt I can out trade a professional trader working for an international grain company. If I could, I'm in the wrong occupation.

I am concerned a little that if the large international grain companies were to do some illegal "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" like we have seen time and time again with the big international "too big to fail" banks with their market fixing shenanigans, we farmers might become nothing more than serfs on our own land. It concerns me the power that the Cargill's, Monsanto's, etc wield. Is there danger of that happening? Or are we already there? I hope not.

Seems like for those that have the money and connections these days, laws don't apply to them.

John