Global Journal of Fisheries Science

The study was conducted to analyze the factors that determine the sales performance and the constraints that producer-marketers encounter in producing and marketing cultured fish in Benue State, Nigeria. Respondents for the study were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique. Three hundred (300) fish producer-marketers were used for the study, and a structured questionnaire was used to collect data. 299 of the questionnaires returned valid, and data collected were analyzed with the use of multiple regression and factor analysis. Findings show that the coefficients of the independent variables of age, experience, cooperative membership, contact with extension agent, start-up capital, technology application, market research training, and a few other variables are significant at various levels. The coefficient of age was significant at a 1% level and negatively related to cultured fish sales. The negative sign of the coefficient conforms to the a priori expectation, indicating that as age increases by 1 year, fish sales decrease by 0.011%, an indication that as the producer-marketer advances in age, energy and stamina give way, thereby having a negative impact on the productivity of the enterprise. Constraints encountered by the cultured fish producer-marketers surveyed are categorized and based on factors loading, key among which were middlemen-related factors such as activities of middlemen (0.465) and union activities (0.746). The study shows that socioeconomic factors such as the age, household size, and experience of respondents are critical variables that determine the sales performance of cultured fish in the study area. Major constraints were the activities of middlemen and the cost of transportation. It is recommended that the government and relevant stakeholders come up with policies and other initiatives that will encourage young people to embrace the fish-cultivation business while deploying modern techniques and strategies to ensure healthy competition and enhanced profitability in the aquaculture business.