Review Study on Current Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Production Status and Key Challenges for Potential Efficiency of Wheat Markets in Ethiopia

Abstract

The main aim of this review study is to provide an overview of current wheat production status and the key challenges of future bread wheat marketing competence in Ethiopia. Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a prevailing crop in temperate countries and is being used as one of a human sustenance. It is also an important basic food crop in Ethiopia. The success of wheat production depends somewhat on its adaptability and high yield potential, and also based on the gluten protein fraction, which confers the visco-elastic properties that allows its dough to be processed into bread, pasta, noodles and other food products. Improving bread wheat production and productivity as well as facilitating its marketing access is therefore one of a key part of the economic growth strategies in the Ethiopian government’s food self-sufficiency policy programs. The government’s policy interventions that aimed at improving bread wheat production or agricultural production for that matter, however, require involvements beyond the farm lands at the entire bread wheat value chains. Both local production and import are the two key sources of wheat grain supply to the Ethiopian bread wheat value chain have shown a substantial increase since the mid-1990s. So far, a steady increase in domestic wheat consumption has resulted in rising bread wheat and product prices over the forgoing two decades. For instance, bread wheat grain, wheat flour as well as wheat bread prices have all being more than doubled between 2000 and 2020. Using a qualitative survey of selected bread wheat value chain actors and a review of existing literature, this study provides an overview of the bread wheat value chain, institutional and marketing arrangements, and trader behavior of bread wheat value chain actors in Ethiopia. The bread wheat value chain consists of multiple actors that include several small holder farmers and the Ethiopian grain trade enterprise at the upstream and urban and rural consumers at the other end. The study stresses the need for formulation of bread wheat market-enhancing policies, such as quality control and dispute settlement mechanisms as well as better access to market information, to improve bread wheat productivity as well as marketing efficiency.