Analysis of bread wheat market chain: the case of Lemo District, Southern Ethiopia

Bread wheat plays a significant role in the national economy and food self-sufficiency. The marketing system and channels differs for different areas. Production of bread wheat by smallholder farmers of the lemo district is mainly for market which is the most important and widely known cash crop of the area but there was lack of properly functioning marketing system and this often resulted in lower producers’ price. Therefore, this study focused on identifying bread wheat market chain actors and their channels and factors that affect the volume of wheat marketed. Three stage sampling technique was employed in this study. Data were collected from both primary and secondary sources. The primary data were collected from 160 producers and 35 traders. Secondary data were gathered from district agriculture and rural development offices and trade and industry office. Both descriptive and econometric analyses were employed for data analysis. The study indicated, out of the total wheat produced in 2016/17 cropping season, 64.8% was supplied to the market. The result showed that about seven marketing channels were identified in transferring 2083.5Qt wheat from producers to final consumers. The result of a multiple linear regression model indicated that quantity produced and number of oxen affects volume of wheat supply positively while distance to market and family size affect negatively and significantly. Therefore it is advisable that wheat producers in the study area should be encouraged owning good number of oxen to prepare their land in time and responsible bodies should work on development of infrastructure in the area.