Small Scale Farmers Encouraged To Conduct Market Surveys before Production

Agricultural Marketing Lecturer at the University of Cape Coast, Mr. Lawrence Acheampong is advising small scale farmers to conduct intensive market surveys to determine the demands of customers before going into productions.

This, according to Mr. Acheampong is to avoid the recurrent issue of post-harvest losses and the situation where farmers were forced to sell their produce at cheap prices to buyers.

According to the agricultural marketing lecturer, most small scale farmers did not take farming as a serious business. They just produce to the open market without a target group to determine the quantity, quality and even the cost involved, he said.

Mr. Acheampong meanwhile maintained that the cost of production by farmers should determine the market prices of their produce.

“Under normal circumstances, the cost involved in production such as labor, cost of inputs, transportation and proper record keeping must bargain for appreciable market prices for a successful farmer through marketing survey principles,” he said.

The Agricultural Marketing Lecturer who was speaking as guest on the agribusiness segment of the Rite Morning Ride averred that proper marketing survey invariably leads to the expansion of farm as the customer base increases through a multiplicity of means such as taking advantage of opportunities provided by social media and mobile technology to market and sell products before harvest.

Good customer and relationship management, Mr. Acheampong added, remains one of the factors which cannot not be left out in a competitive farming business. He thus advised small scale farmers to form Farmer Base Organizations (FBOs) as a measure to fix appreciable market prizes.

Source; Prince Paul Amuzu/www.ritefmonline.org/princeamuzu667@gmail.com