Marketing of indigenous leafy vegetables by farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria: constraints and opportunities

The importance of leafy vegetable production and consumption in Nigeria is widely acknowledged. Marketing not only plays a vital role in stimulating production and consumption by linking producer and consumer, but also contributes to economic development of the producers and the country at large. The perishable nature of leafy vegetables necessitates efficient marketing for optimal benefit for both farmers and final consumers. It is not enough to produce vegetables, but also very essential that what is produced is successfully marketed. The study examined the constraints and opportunities in the marketing of indigenous leafy vegetables by farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria. With the use of multi-stage sampling technique, data were collected from a sample of one hundred and twenty indigenous leafy vegetable farmers involved in Micro-Veg project using structured questionnaires administered through interview schedules. Results revealed that the farmland area under indigenous leafy vegetable production varied from 20 to 56% of total farmland holdings in the rainy season to between 22 and 80% during dry season. Several marketing channels were used by the farmers, Farmer → Assembly trader → Retailer → Consumer and Farmer → Retailer → Consumer being the popular channels. Perishable nature of produce, shortage of water supply during dry seasons, lack of storage facilities, lack of market information and inefficient means of transportation were constraints identified by farmers in relation to the marketing of indigenous leafy vegetables. Benefits from improved vegetable marketing opportunities include higher returns from sales via farmer groups to urban end users such as hotels and schools. The study recommends joint market research and sales by farmers for reduced transaction costs and better income as these would contribute immensely towards sustainable production of indigenous leafy vegetables and overall rural economic development.