Analysis of Onion Retail Marketing in Benue State, Nigeria

The study examined onion retail marketing in Benue State, Nigeria. Multistage sampling technique was employed to select 150 onion marketers in the study area. Primary data were collected using structured questionnaire administered to respondents. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, marketing efficiency, Gini coefficient, gross margin and marketing margin. The study revealed that majority (66%) of the respondents were female, 70% were married with a mean age of 37years and a mean income of N10,082.56 per basket. The result further showed mean marketing efficiency of 26.76 indicating that the product was efficient, Gini Coefficient of 0.76 indicating that onion marketing was highly competitive, the gross margin was 14325 and gross marketing margin 15.14 indicating that it was profitable venture. Debt, seasonality and robbery constituted the greatest challenge faced by onion retail marketers in the study area. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that interest rate at single digit should be given to onion marketers for loans obtained because they have low annual income. Also, more security posts should be provided given that robbery is among the constraints faced by the marketers.