Possible solutions to Problems faced by farmers when marketing Agricultural produce.
Perishability of fresh agricultural produce is among the largest problems farmers face as they market and sell their produce. Perishable goods like vegetables, dairy products and fruits make farmers fear to venture in farming so as to evade possible losses which may occur during marketing. Farmers in perishable products farming should form a cooperative where they can channel their produce. A Sacco which is well equipped with proper transportation and refrigeration that are fully equipped with systems to circulate air is ideal to offer marketing linkage on behalf of farmers.
Value addition is a technique that most farmers are slowly adapting to avoid wastage and add shelf life to perishable products. This includes drying some products like tomatoes, mangoes and some are processing products like fresh milk into products like homemade yogurts so as to add shelf life. Introduction of fresh box from Bosch is slowly improving the standards of farmers and adding time up to 8 days after harvesting vegetables.
Establishment of processing plants near areas of production is key prevent produce from going bad and cut transportation costs. Improvement of transport sector to make all roads passable during all weather conditions
Changes in demand and supply of farm produce are usually inevitable. Due to unwavering weather patterns farmers need to adopt crop irrigation during dry weather to ensure steady supply of products. Since the law of supply states that as the price of a commodity raises, the quantity offered for sale rises. Farmers should strive to have adequate market knowledge to know purchasing patterns of consumers and what they prefer before planting. Lack of timely and accurate market information affects pricing of products and may create a shortage or surplus thus reduction in pricing.
By: Patricia M. Kombo
patriciah@africafarmers.org
