What is business?
Business is a word that is commonly used in many different languages. But exactly what does it mean? The concepts and activities of business have increased in modern times. Traditionally, business simply meant exchange or trade for things people wanted or needed. Today it has a more technical definition. One definition of business is the production, distribution, and sale of goods and services for a profit. To examine this definition, we will look at its various parts.
First, production is the creation of services or the changing of materials into products. One example is the conversion of iron ore into metal car parts. Next, these products need to be moved from the factory to the marketplace. This is known as distribution. A car might be moved from a factor}' in Detroit to a car dealership in Miami.
Third is the sale of goods and services. Sale is the exchange of a product or service for money. A car is sold to someone in exchange for money. Goods are products that people either need or want; for example, cars can be classified as goods. Services, on the other hand, are activities that a person or group performs for another person or organization. For instance, an auto mechanic performs a service when he repairs a car. A doctor also performs a service by taking care of people when they are sick.
Business, then, is a combination of all these activities: production, distribution, and sale. However, there is one other important factor. This factor is the creation of profit or economic surplus. A major goal in the functioning of an American business company is making a profit. Profit is the money that remains after all the expenses are paid. Creating an economic surplus or profit is, therefore, a primary goal of business activity.
Agriculture in canada
More than 80 per cent of Canada's farmland is in the prairies that stretch from Alberta to Manitoba, and two-thirds of farm income is earned by prairie fanners. Despite the importance of agriculture, only about one Canadian in 80 is a farmer. The average farm size is about 225 hectares (555 acres).
Wheat and other grain crops cover three quarters of the arable land. Canada exports about 80 per cent of its wheat production which accounts for 20 per cent of the world's wheat exports. In the Prairie Provinces, tall narrow grain elevators, where the grain harvest is stored, are distinctive landmarks. Most elevators stand beside railways, and most grain is sent to market by rail. In addition to grain, large prairie areas are devoted to raising cattle. In some other places, high quality farmland is being used for industrial and urban developments, and this is causing concern, particularly in areas like the Niagara peninsula in southern Ontario where much fruit is grown.
Us agriculture
An economic analysis of American agriculture can be justified on a number of grounds:
1. Agriculture is one of the nation's largest industries. Consumers spend about 3 6 percent of their after tax incomes on food and other farm products. Gross farm, income was about $185 billion in 1991 and approximately 2 percent, of the labor force is employed in agriculture.
2. Agriculture is an industry which—hi the absence of government farm programs - is a real-world example of purely competitive model. The industry comprises many firms selling virtually standardized products. Agriculture is an industry which can be understood by applying the demand and supply tools of competitive markets.
3. Farm markets provide revealing evidence of the intended and unintended effects of government policies which interfere with the forces of supply and demand.
4. Agriculture reflects the increasing globalization of markets. In recent decades the economic ups and downs of American agriculture have been closely tied to its ability to gain, access to world markets.
5. Farm policies provide us with excellent illustrations of special interest effect and rent-seeking behavior.