This study assessed the effects of marketing costs on the gross margin of guinea corn retailers in Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria. The main aim of the study is not to only obtain precise costs and margins estimates for the conventional marketing functions of guinea corn, but rather to make the result of the analyses usable to devise a policy framework for an effective marketing strategy and improvement in the efficiency of guinea corn marketing and agricultural produce/products markets in Taraba State and Nigeria in general. Structured questionnaire was used to illicit response from forty guinea corn retail marketers across six local government areas of the state during the 2017 marketing season. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data collected, while Ordinary Least Squares Analytical Procedure was used to determine the parameter estimates of marketing costs. The average retailers' gross margin per 50 kg bag stood at N1,036.16, while price and transportation cost per 100 kg bag is N17,472.00 and N249.00, respectively. Storage cost for six months period stood at N163.00 per 100 kg bag. The results showed that retailers' selling price, transport cost, storage and cost due to perishability have significant effects on retailers' gross margin, at 8, 5, 10 and 9% levels, respectively. It is recommended that transportation facilities should be sustained by government, private individuals and corporate groups in addition to intensification of research into post-harvest storage and processing techniques. Again, funds and storage facilities should be made available to the marketers to enable them take advantage of bulk purchasing during harvesting seasons to ensure market expansion that will improve guinea corn marketing cum retailer gross margin like in the study area.
The study examined the economic analysis of yam processing into yam flour in Saki Agro ecological Zone of Oyo State. It specifically described the profitability of yam processing; examined the technical efficiency of yam processors and determined the effect of the socio-economic characteristics on technical efficiency. Data were collected with the aid of structured questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics, profitability and budgetary analysis as well as stochastic frontier model and Garrett scale. The study reveals that majority of the respondents were female (88%) with a mean age of 47. The result shows that the rate of return on investment was 12 percent. The mean technical efficiency of the processors was 85% indicating that the yam processors were relatively efficient in allocating their limited resources. Some observable variables relating to socioeconomic characteristics such as processing experience and sex of the respondents significantly explains the variation in technical efficiency. Factors such as high cost of yam tubers, poor weather condition and inadequate processing facilities are the major factors that hinder the processing activities in the study area. The study therefore recommends that government policies should be made to improve the provision of inputs such as yam tubers and capital equipment at affordable price.
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