Bambara marketing margins analysis

Abstract

Bambara Marketing Margins study was conducted in selected production and consumption centers in the Northern, Upper East and Brong Ahafo regions using a commodity subsystems approach. The study identifies the distribution channels for bambara by tracing the movement of raw bambara grain from the producing centers to the consuming centers, examines the socioeconomic background of the various actors in the marketing system and gathers data on prices at the various bambara distribution channel for marketing margins analysis. Results indicate that bambara is a low volume traded product at both wholesale and retail levels as compared to other legumes and has limited distribution outlets. Approximately 35% of volumes of bambara produced is utilized by the producer-households either as food and/or seed and about 92% of the bambara producers sell their produce at their homes or local markets. Sales are usually effected five months after harvesting (May-June), when food is scarce and demand is high. However, high demand in the South coincides with the plantain season, which occurs in January-February. A few (13%) bambara producers sell their produce to processors directly on the local markets and about 51% of producers interviewed depend solely on the activities of visiting itinerant traders. Producers who sell directly to local itinerant traders only constitute about 12% of the sample interviewed while 6% sell to retailers. The bambara marketing structure could be classified as an oligopsonistic one, having few buyers and consumers have little knowledge of bambara-based products. Pricing is based largely on negotiation/bargaining power, than with the true value of the product and the position of the producer in price formation is weak. The Total Gross Marketing Margin for bambara is estimated at 41.66% with Producer Participation Margin of 58.34%. Total Marketing Charges is approximately 11%: Recommendations made include development of consumer educational programs focusing on the contribution of bambara to health and nutritional requirements as well as its unique flavour, establishment of a viable bambara market information system, market expansion effort to be focused on both bambara consumers and non bambara consumers using value based marketing strategy as well as a further investigation into post storage volume traded at various stages of the distribution chain