Postharvest Loss Management Techniques and the Poverty status of Pineapple Farmers in Edo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Deborah Innosare Nosazeogie

Postharvest loss management in Nigeria is a bane to the production of food crops in Nigeria. While it is mostly rudimentary where it is available, in most areas, it is non-existent and this has compounded the woes of farming households in that it has decimated the meager income generated by the farmers. This has led to wide spread poverty among households in Nigeria. Pineapple as an economic crop is cultivated on a large scale in Edo state, but high postharvest loss could lead to increased poverty among farming households in the state. Therefore this study was carried out to examine the effect of postharvest loss management techniques on the poverty status of pineapple farmers in Edo state, Nigeria. 180 respondents from two local governments were sampled using a wellstructured questionnaire and multi-stage sampling procedure. Using descriptive statistics, gross margin, multiple regression, Probit regression and Foster Greer and Thorbecke (FGT) Poverty measures, results revealed that Sorting, grading, placing pineapples upside down, and covering pineapples with trampoline are the main postharvest loss management techniques used by respondents in the study area. The mean value of postharvest loss management practice in naira is â?¦6485, and the gross margin for pineapple in the study area is â?¦94,598,139 per production season. Poverty incidence (P0 ) in the study area was found to be 24.4%, the poverty depth/gap (P1 ) was found to be 6% and the poverty severity (P2 ) was 2.33%. Years of farming experience, trimming of crowns and stalks, scale of operation, early harvesting, and grading are the variables that significantly affect the poverty status of respondents in the study area.

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