Abstract
Beef cattle farmers are in an ideal position to advance their income through marketing; however, the subsector is characterized by low market participation. Wealth preservation and prestige from cattle accumulation outweigh market incentives, thereby jeopardizing the integration of farmers into organized market systems. Therefore, the study was set to examine the determinants of farmers’ sales decisions in cattle marketing. Understanding determinants of sales decisions is an indispensable base for establishing sustainable development policy frameworks that maximize rural economic growth. Descriptive statistics and a double-hurdle model were applied on cross-sectional data collected from 397 farmers through personal interviews aided by a structured questionnaire. Herd size (74.1%), ecological zone (32.4%), slaughters (22.1%), pregnant cows (18.2%), experience (15.0%) and breed type (11.4%) revealed statistically significant effects on the probability of market participation. The key determinants of the level of market participation (p < 0.01) included extension, married marital status, pasture availability, cows, heifers, market distance, market information and market channel 2 (individual). Education, experience, non-farm income, expenses and laborers were significant at p < 0.05. Widowed marital status and market channel 1 (processor) were found to be significant at p < 0.1. Extension adjustments and institutionalization of market linkages are recommended to assist farmers in increasing marketable surplus.
Highlights
Since meat developed into a valuable commodity, the demand for livestock food products has increased as people shift from plant to animal-based protein sources
Standard deviation, frequencies and percentages and inferential statistics of significant differences were adopted to describe and compare the variables used in the study
Since herd size is directly related to productivity and marketable surplus, the implication of the results is that larger herd size increases the probability of market entry through the offtake of readily available market surplus
Summary
Since meat developed into a valuable commodity, the demand for livestock food products has increased as people shift from plant to animal-based protein sources. Such demand and preference shifts are mainly driven by the interplay between population growth and increase in income [1,2]. The projected 2.3 billion additional world population growth by 2050 demands that meat production increases by 200 million tons to 470 million tons by 2050 [3]. Considering that about 72% of the projected increase in meat production will be consumed in developing countries, the demand increase and preference shifts present improved market opportunities for livestock farmers in developing countries [4,5]. Beef cattle farmers are at an ideal position to improve their livelihoods through active participation in the radically growing meat industry [6]
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