Oats: Trading
One of the oldest grain futures, now lightly traded
What this tab covers How and where it is bought and sold: who buys and sells, exchanges and benchmarks, contract types, the big trading houses and how prices are discovered.CBOT in Chicago lists oat futures, one of the oldest grain contracts, but trading volumes are small. Physical oats are bought by millers directly from growers and merchants, priced against those futures plus a basis for quality and location. Canadian exports to US millers move largely by rail. Price-reporting agencies and grain merchants publish cash quotes for Canada and the Nordic countries. Large food companies often contract supply directly with farmers to secure milling quality.
Where it is bought (buyers)
- US millers (Quaker/PepsiCo, General Mills and others) buy Canadian milling oats delivered by rail
- Chinese, Mexican and Japanese buyers import oats and oat products (China 0.9 Mt in 2025/26, USDA)
- Indian packaged-food firms import small volumes from Australia and Canada
Where it is sold (sellers)
- Canadian farmers sell to Richardson, Grain Millers and other millers and grain companies on the prairies
- Finnish, Swedish and Polish growers export to EU millers and to the US
- Australian growers sell to exporters for Asian markets
Exchanges and benchmarks
| Venue | Contract | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| CBOT (CME Group) | Oats futures, 5,000 bushels, US cents per bushel | thinly traded but the only global oats benchmark |
| India | none | no oats contract on NCDEX or MCX |
Contract types
- Production contracts between millers and farmers for named milling varieties
- Rail-delivered sales priced as a basis to CBOT oats futures
- Spot feed oat sales in local markets
Top trading houses
- Richardson International
- Grain Millers
- Cargill
- Bunge (incl. Viterra)
How prices are discovered
- CBOT oats futures plus prairie basis
- USDA average farm price in WASDE
- Millers' posted bids