Prospects of commercialization among small scale potato farmers in Bizana

Abstract

The study examined the potential for commercialization among selected small-scale potato farmers. Fifty eight farmers in Mbizana were purposively sampled for the study, which reviewed production challenges, investigated the potato supply market in the area and also estimated the farmer’s level of commercialization. Structured questionnaires were used to obtain information from the farmers and potato sellers, key agricultural stakeholders in the area were interviewed, and reports from published materials consulted. The study utilized the household commercialization index (HCI) and an ordinary least square (OLS) regression model as its main analytical tool, while using descriptive statistics produced from the SPSS (Version 15.0) statistical software to characterize the respondents and their production and marketing features. The study’s finding show that the farmers are producing on small sized farms allocated by community leaders, rely on rain-fed cropping systems and do not have access to formal credit for farming. While few of the farmers are still subsistent producers, most of the respondents sold surpluses through informal market channels, as bottlenecks existed in accessing formal markets. Average commercialization level among the respondents was estimated to be 0.48, indicating that most of the farmers were below the half-way point to a fully commercialized status. Access to credit, farm size and years of farming experience were determined to be significant factors affecting commercialization among the respondents. Though there is some support from a number of stakeholders, the study recommends increased targeted support, through interventions that improve production practices, access to credit and markets.