| Question 1.1: How did Ocean Spray sell concentrate previously? |
| Spot sales and longer-term contracts were negotiated and awarded on a customer-by-customer basis. |
| Question 1.2: How has this new sales channel affected customers’ relationship with Ocean Spray? |
| Ocean Spray’s relationship with customers has remained unchanged; however this process provides transparency to concentrate pricing. |
| Question 1.3: Why has Ocean Spray decided to sell concentrate by auction? |
| The chosen on-line auction model for cranberry concentrate sales offers our customers significant benefits. Auctions are an efficient and transparent way of establishing the clearing price for Ocean Spray’s cranberry concentrate, making product available to all qualified buyers worldwide on a consistent basis. The auction process provides customers with price and supply clarity and certainty and efficient contracting. |
| Question 1.4: What was wrong with the old system? |
| It had become apparent that customers wanted improved efficiency in concentrate sales. In other words, concentrate buyers wanted better information regarding Ocean Spray’s concentrate pricing and availability. In consultation with a number of parties, Ocean Spray identified an auction process, managed by an independent third party, as the best way to implement fair, transparent and efficient cranberry concentrate trading. |
| Question 1.5: Why would I want to participate in the auctions? |
| Ocean Spray believes that customers are attracted to participate in the auctions because the auctions offer them: - Price clarity — Customers can clearly observe cranberry concentrate pricing
- Supply certainty — Customers know they can always obtain supply
- Supply transparency — Customers know why some get concentrate and others don’t
- Price certainty — Customers can conduct their business with known concentrate pricing for future delivery
- Efficient contracting — Customers can procure concentrate quickly and easily
- Supply flexibility — Customers decide when to take delivery
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| Question 1.6: Who can enter the auction? |
| Anyone can apply to become a Registered User by visiting www.cranberryauction.info. |
| Question 1.7: How can I be sure the process will work for me? |
| Ocean Spray is committed to supporting potential bidders by: - Providing information and education needed to participate confidently
- Making available the auction Information Website, including a Q&A section
- Establishing easy, central access to relevant information and documents
- Providing convenient self-guided demonstrations to gain understanding and familiarity
- Conducting practice or “mock” auctions to experience the actual process before a real auction
- Ensuring only serious, credible bidders participate – thus all bidders are required to be registered and to have credit pre-approval 30 days prior to each auction
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| Question 1.8: How do I become a Qualified Bidder? |
- Register as a user of the auction Information Website and request to become a CranberryAuction Qualified Bidder here
- After you have submitted your request to become a CranberryAuction Qualified Bidder, you will be contacted by an Ocean Spray representative, who will provide guidance through the remainder of the process
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| Question 1.9: What is the minimum bid quantity? |
| A bidder submits its bid by entering the volume it desires at the current price in the auction. The minimum volume is 1,000 US gallons. |
| Question 1.10: What are the restrictions on bidding? |
| The minimum bid quantity is 1,000 US gallons and the incremental bid is 50 gallons (1 drum). That is, bidders can bid in 50-gallon increments for any quantity greater than or equal to 1,000 gallons. Bidders are restricted only by their bidding eligibility limits. |
| Question 1.11: What if a potential buyer doesn’t want to buy the minimum quantity? |
| Ocean Spray offers limited quantities less than 1,000 US gallons per order at a premium to the price established during the auction period. |
| Question 1.12: Am I required to pull my volume in one half truckload increments under this auction process? |
| Shipments need not be pulled in increments of a minimum of 1,000 gallons; however; an upcharge will be assessed on small volume releases. |
| Question 1.13: How long does each auction take? |
| Each trading session should take only a few hours. |
| Question 1.14: How does the auction process work? |
| The process involves seven steps and each trading session should take only a few hours. - Step 1: By the due date, bidders confirm acceptance of the terms and conditions of participation.
- Step 2: The independent Trading Manager confirms the starting price for the first round five calendar days prior to the bidding date.
- Step 3: At the start of bidding, each bidder enters the volumes desired at the announced starting prices. The Trading Manager closes the first bidding round after a pre-specified period of time.
- Step 4: For each successive bidding round, the Trading Manager raises the prices in response to excess demand, if any, and bidders re-submit desired volumes at the new prices. This continues for successive rounds until the total bid volume falls to the level of volume available for purchase.
- Step 5: Shortly after the close of the auction, the Trading Manager confirms to Ocean Spray and to each winning bidder the volumes they have won and the corresponding price in US dollars per US gallon.
- Step 6: Each customer is contacted by Ocean Spray or its agent / representative to execute the contract. Ocean Spray arranges shipment to the customer’s destination.
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| Question 1.15: Is there a reserve price and what role does it play? |
| Yes, there is a reserve price. The reserve price is the price below which Ocean Spray will not sell any concentrate in the auction. |
| Question 1.16: How is the starting price decided? |
| The starting price is used as a means of encouraging broad participation in the auction. Starting prices do not represent Ocean Spray’s view of the price for cranberry concentrate. |
| Question 1.17: Can an individual buyer’s bids be seen by anyone else? |
| No. The only party that will see each bid volume/price during the auction will be the independent Trading Manager. |
| Question 1.18: Can I be guaranteed to get supply? |
| Yes, as long as you stay in the auction through the final round. |
| Question 1.19: What are the benefits of auctioning the concentrate to Ocean Spray? |
| By developing a simple and easy auction process and promoting it extensively in key sectors worldwide, Ocean Spray hopes to boost demand for cranberry concentrate among both existing and prospective customers. By establishing a fair and transparent process for its customers, Ocean Spray benefits from efficient on-line trading. Ocean Spray builds credibility with customers with this even-handed, fair and transparent commodity sales process. |
| Question 1.20: How do customers benefit? |
| Ocean Spray’s customers benefit from an efficient means of executing fixed-price contracts for future delivery of cranberry concentrate. The auctions ensure price and supply clarity and certainty, efficient contracting and supply flexibility. |
| Question 1.21: Why do you think customers will want to spend time participating in an auctions? |
| In uncertain times, the advantages the auctions will bring are a big incentive to attract our customers to take part. Customers will have price clarity, supply certainty, supply transparency, price certainty, efficient contracting and supply flexibility. Furthermore, the support that will be provided to guide customers through the process will help make it easy and efficient. |
| Question 1.22: What is the difference between my eligibility and my Contract Period limits? |
| For each Round of the auction, each bidder has an eligibility that represents the maximum total number of gallons that the bidder may bid combined across both Contracts. Each bidder’s eligibility declines or remains the same as the auction progresses. Eligibility cannot increase as the auction progresses. A bidder’s eligibility in a Round is equal to the bidder’s total gallons bid from the prior Round. In short, if a bidder bids fewer gallons round to round, then the bidder’s eligibility declines round to round. In addition to eligibility, each bidder has a Contract Period limit for each Contract. The Contract Period limit does not change during an auction. The Contract Period limit restricts how a bidder bids its eligibility across the Contracts being auctioned. For example, suppose a bidder starts with an eligibility of 10,000 gallons and Contract Period limits of 5,000 gallons on Contract 1 and 5,000 gallons Contract 2. In Round 1 of the auction, the bidder may bid up to 10,000 gallons in total, but the bidder may not bid more than 5,000 gallons on either Contract. Suppose in Round 1, this bidder chose to bid 4,000 gallons on Contract 1 and zero gallons on Contract 2. This bidder’s eligibility would decline to 4,000 gallons for Round 2. However, the bidder’s Contract Period limits would remain unchanged. This bidder would be free to bid up to 4,000 gallons in Round 2 of the auction and subject to any potential limitations based on Round 2 prices, the bidder would be free to bid that full 4,000 on either Contract 1 or Contract 2. Alternatively, the bidder could bid a portion of the 4,000 gallons on each Contract subject only to minimum bid quantity restrictions. |