Production cost management is one of the most crucial factor of a successful company, in this paper I show a methodology how can we track variable costs, what kind of analytical tool can we have if we want to understand the variances of the production cost versus expectations. Nowadays during economic crisis the real world can be far from the expectation of the management, so it is important to understand if the drivers of the variances caused by internal or external factors. In this methodology the reasons of the variances can be caused by some external circumstances, like inflation and due to some operational issue, like variable cost productivity. This methodology can help to understand key drivers of cost differences, and can help to measure the efficiency of manufacturing function within the company.

AGRIMBA started 14 year ago as a successful Tempus project with the participation of universities in Warsaw (Poland) and Prague (Czech Republic). University of Debrecen (Hungary) joined quite soon to the Network. Since that time the Network has developed into an efficient way of upgrading the management knowledge of young managers mainly in Central and Eastern Europe. However, the main message of this paper is that the MBA is not only a way of improving the business skills of the students but also an effective way of intensifying the participating teaching staff’s contacts (personal and web based) within the Network, as well as with the globalised world of agribusiness. In this way AGRIMBA works as a highly needed medium of communication in the field of agribusiness between theory and practice and therefore is an effective tool in life long and e-learning

The principal achievement of this paper is the combinative use of two market institutions: public warehousing and commodity exchange and how their joint application is beneficial for the players on the grain market. Based on a theoretical foundation, a calculation model was developed in order to assist short and long-term marketing decisions. This electronically developed and working model allows all the three participants of the market: producers, consumers and traders, to use this model in immediate calculations in price decisions and business transactions. The model can be used to analyze factors influencing the establishment of price; therefore, it can be also used for policy-making decisions and applied in our undergraduate and graduate education.

The principal achievement of this paper is the combinative use of two market institutions: public warehousing and commodity exchange and how their joint application is beneficial for the players on the grain market. Based on a theoretical foundation, a calculation model was developed in order to assist short and long-term marketing decisions. It allows all the three participants of the market: producers, consumers and traders, to use this model in order to establish their own business strategy. The model can be used to analyse factors influencing the establishment of price; therefore, it can be also used for policy-making decisions.

The change of the political Hungarian regime in 1990 affected deeply the economy of the country. This change made effects in each national branch, thus in the agriculture, as well. A lot of new companies dealing with agricultural production and trading has also been established in these years. Since the early ‘90s a lot of EU support programmes were available targeting these enterprises and providing them to strengthen their competitiveness. One of these programmes was the PHARE IPP Project for the subsidisation of the agricultural investments (between 1996-1998). The University of Debrecen was involved in the implementation, monitoring and assessment process of this project. Based on the results and suggestions of the university, new supporting elements have been built into the subsidisation programme of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in the recent years, further enhancing the position of Hungarian farms before joining to the EU.

The change of the political Hungarian regime in 1990 affected deeply the economy of the country. This change made effects in each national branch, thus in the agriculture, as well. A lot of new companies dealing with agricultural production and trading has also been established in these years. Since the early '90s a lot of EU support programmes were available targeting these enterprises and providing them to strengthen their competitiveness. One of these programmes was the PHARE IPP Project for the subsidisation of the agricultural investments (between 1996-1998). The University of Debrecen was involved in the implementation, monitoring and assessment process of this project. Based on the results and suggestions of the university, new supporting elements have been built into the subsidisation programme of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in the recent years, further enhancing the position of Hungarian farms before joining to the EU.