Title : Commercialization of avocado fruit: Evidence from wolaita and kembata tembero zone Ethiopia
Abstract:
The policies in Ethiopia to advance the commercial orientation of farmers need identification of challenges at the farmer level and exhaustive actions to shift the farm sector. Further activities have to be done to change the country’s present subsistence-oriented farm production system of different horticultural crops. The research has aimed at investigating factors determining avocado fruits commercialization using cross-sectional data obtained from 385 randomly selected sampled households from Wolaita and Kembata Tembaro zones in Ethiopia. To identify factors influencing avocado fruit output commercialization, and level of commercialization of avocado fruits data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and an econometric model. The mean commercialization index for the sample households was 0.58, which indicates that on average a household sold 58% of its total avocado fruit production. As a result, farm households’ output commercialization levels fall in commercialized farming systems. The Tobit model result indicated that farm households’ avocado fruit output commercialization was positively and significantly influenced by sex of the household head; educational level of household head; frequency of extension contact; access to training on fruit production and management; access to credit; income generating from off-farm income; quantity of avocado fruits produced; and access to transportation. Based on the findings, improving the educational status; accessing training and extension services; delivering market information timely; increment in productivity of avocado fruits should be considered to increase degree of avocado commercialization.
