Determinants of Coffee Marketing among Smallholder Coffee Farmers in Kogi State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study assessed the determinants of coffee production and marketing on farmers’ farms in Kogi State. Two Local Government Areas (Ijumu and Kabba-Bunu Local Government Areas) were purposively sampled. These areas are known for the production and marketing of coffee. A total sample of eighty-four respondents was randomly selected from the two Local Government Areas. Structured interview schedules were used for data collection from respondents. The data collected were analyzed using inferential statistics analysis. Cobb-Douglas functional form regression model was chosen based on the value of the R2 and the number of significant variables. The result indicated that marital status, household size, educational level, variety of coffee planted, farm size and farming experience constituted the major factors that significantly determined coffee production and marketing in the study area. The study recommended that policies should be targeted at encouraging literacy among coffee farmers to have access to market information and as such will be able to sell the crop for more profits. Also, households with higher number of persons should be encouraged to use family labour effectively in coffee marketing than other economic ventures so as to improve the economy of the households in the study area.