Journal of Agricultural Science and Practice

The study analysed the profitability of groundnut marketing in the Gombi Local Government Area of Adamawa State, Nigeria. Purposive and random sampling techniques were employed in selecting 150 groundnut traders from Kasuwan Buhu, Kasuwan Ganji, Kasuwan Tashan Marghi and Kasuwan Butu. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, gross margin analysis and multiple regression. The finding shows that 98.08% and 78.79% of the wholesalers and retailers were male, having mean age of 35 years and 37 years, respectively. Similarly, 96.08% and 87.88% of wholesalers and retailers had formal education, with a mean household size of 5 and 6 persons for wholesalers and retailers, respectively. The mean marketing experience of 9.80 years and 9.11 years, with 78.43% and 93.94% of wholesalers and retailers having no access to credit facilities. It was also established that 84.31% and 91.92% of the wholesalers and retailers belonged to the Gombi Local Government traders’ union. Groundnut marketing for both categories was profitable, with retailers having the highest gross margin of N3,272.94/bag and N2,813.50/bag for wholesalers, with return on naira invested (ROI) of 1.07 and 1.06 for retailers and wholesalers, respectively. Access to credit, marketing experience, purchase cost, level of education, access to market information and transport cost happen to be the significant factors influencing the profitability of groundnut marketing in the study area. Based on the findings, it was recommended that there is a need for efficient policy formulation toward price setting by the government and marketing agencies so as to curtail incessant seasonal variation in the price of groundnut and its products. Groundnut marketers should form cooperative groups to have access to loans from banks for a better capital base, which will attract good profits. The government should construct good roads in order to address the high transportation costs.