CHAPTER FOUR

4. AGRICULTURAL MARKETING
Meaning of market
 The word market comes from the latin word
“marcatus” which means merchandise or trade
or a place where business is conducted.
 In common parlance, a market includes any
place where persons assemble for the sale or
purchase of commodities intended for satisfying
human wants.
 The word market in the economic sense carries
a broad meaning.
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Some of the definitions of market are given as follows:
1. A market is the sphere within which price determining
forces operate.
2. A market is the area within which the forces of demand
and supply converge to establish a single price.
3. The term market means not a particular market place
in which things are bought and sold, but the whole of
any region in which buyers and sellers are in such a free
interact with one another that the prices of the same
goods tend to equality, easily and quickly.
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4. Market means a social institution which performs activities
and provides facilities for exchanging commodities
between buyers and sellers.
5. Economically interpreted, the term market refers, not to
a place but to a commodity or commodities and buyers
and sellers who are in free interact with one another.
 A market exists when buyers wishing to exchange the money
for a good or service are in contact with the sellers who are
willing to exchange goods or services for money.
Thus, a market is defined in terms of the existence of
fundamental forces of supply and demand and is not necessarily
confined to a particular geographical location.
 Components or Essentials of a Market
For a market to exist, certain conditions must be satisfied.
1. The existence of a good or commodity for
transactions (physical existence is, however, not
necessary);
2. The existence of buyers and sellers;
3. Business relationship between buyers and sellers; and
4. Demarcation of area such as place, region, country or
the whole world.
Note: The existence of perfect competition or a uniform
price is not necessary.
 Market Structure
 Market structure refers to those organizational
characteristics of a market which influence the
nature of competition and pricing, and affect
the conduct of business firms;
 An understanding and knowledge of the
market structure is essential for identifying the
imperfections in the performance of a market.
 Components of Market Structure:
The components of the market structure, which together
determine the conduct and performance of the market, are:
1. Concentration of Market Power:
 This is measured by the number and size of firms existing in
the market.
 The extent of concentration represents the control of an
individual firm or a group of firms over the buying and selling
of the produce.
 A high degree of market concentration restricts the movement
of goods between buyers and sellers at fair and competitive
prices, and creates an oligopoly or oligopsony situation in the
market.
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2. Degree of Product Differentiation:
 Whether or not the products are homogeneous
affects the market structure.
 If products are homogeneous, the price variations
in the market will not be wide. When products are
heterogeneous, firms have the tendency to
charge different prices for their products.
 Everyone tries to prove that his product is
superior to the products of others.
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Conditions for Entry of Firms in the Market:
3.

 Another dimension of the market structure is the restriction, if any, on

the entry of firms in the market.
 Sometimes, a few big firms do not allow new firms to enter the
market or make their entry difficult by their dominance in the market.
 There may also be some government restrictions on the entry of firms.
4. Flow of Market Information:
A well-organized market intelligence information system helps all the
buyers and sellers to freely interact with one another in arriving at prices
and striking deals.
5. Degree of Integration
The behavior of an integrated market will be different from that of a
market where there is no integration either among the firms or of their
activities.
 Agricultural Marketing

 The term agricultural marketing is composed of two words-

agriculture and marketing.
 Agriculture, mean growing and/or raising crops and livestock.
 Marketing connotes a series of activities involved in moving
the goods from the point of production to the point of
consumption.
 It includes all the activities involved in the creation of time,
place, form and possession utility.
 Agricultural marketing refers to all marketing functions
performed to move agricultural inputs and outputs from the
point of production to the point of their final utilization.
 The agricultural marketing system is a link between the farm
and the nonfarm sectors.
 Marketing of Agricultural and Manufactured Goods:

The marketing of agricultural commodities is

different from the marketing of manufactured
commodities because of the special
characteristics of the agricultural sector
(demand and supply) which have a bearing on
marketing.
Because of these characteristics, the subject
of agricultural marketing has been treated as a
separate discipline and this fact makes the
subject somewhat complicated.
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• These special characteristics of the agricultural sector affect
the supply and demand of agricultural products in a manner
different from that governing the supply and demand of
manufactured commodities.
• The special characteristics which the agricultural sector
possesses, and which are different from those of the
manufactured sector, are:

Perishability of the Product:

 Most farm products are perishable in nature; but the period
of their perishability varies from a few hours to a few months.
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 Their perishability makes it almost impossible for producers to fix the
reserve price for their farm-grown products.
 The extent of perishability of farm products may be reduced by the
processing function; but they cannot be made non-perishable like
manufactured products.
 Nor can their supply be made regular.

Seasonality of Production:
 Farm products are produced in a particular season; they cannot be
produced throughout the year.
 In the harvest season, prices fall.
 But the supply of manufactured products can be adjusted or made
uniform throughout the year.
 Their prices therefore remain almost the same throughout the year.
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3. Bulkiness of Products:
The characteristic of bulkiness of most farm products makes their
transportation and storage difficult and expensive. This fact also
restricts the location of production to somewhere near the place of
consumption or processing.
– The price spread in bulky products is higher because of the
higher costs of transportation and storage.
4. Variation in Quality of Products:
 There is a large variation in the quality of agricultural products,
which makes their grading and standardization somewhat difficult.
 There is no such problem in manufactured goods, for they are
products of uniform quality.
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5. Irregular Supply of Agricultural Products:
• The supply of agricultural products is uncertain and irregular
because of the dependence of agricultural production on
natural conditions.
– With the varying supply, the demand remaining almost constant,
the prices of agricultural products fluctuate substantially.
6. Small Size of Holdings and Scattered Production:
• Farm products are produced throughout the length and
breadth of the country and most of the producers are of small
size.
• This makes the estimation of supply difficult and creates
problems in marketing
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7. Processing:
 Most of the farm products have to be processed
before their consumption by the ultimate consumers.
 This processing function increases the price spread of
agricultural commodities.
 Processing firms enjoy the advantage of monopsony,
oligopsony or duopsony in the market.
 This situation creates disincentives for the producers
and may have an adverse effect on production in the
next year.
 IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURAL MARKETING
 Marketing is productive, and is as necessary as the farm production.
 Marketing adds cost to the product; but, at the same time, it adds
utilities to the product.
The following four types of utilities of the product are created by
marketing
(a) Form Utility:
• The processing function adds form utility to the product by changing
the raw material into a finished form.
– With this change, the product becomes more useful than it is
• in the form in which it is produced by the farmer.
– For example, through processing, oilseeds are converted into oil, sugarcane
into sugar, cotton into cloth and wheat into flour and bread.
• The processed forms are more useful than the original r1a8w materials.
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(b)Place Utility:
The transportation function adds place utility to products
by shifting them to a place of need from the place of plenty.
• Products command higher prices at the place of need
than at the place of production because of the increased
utility of the product.
(c) Time Utility:
• The storage function adds time utility to the products by
making them available at the time when they are
needed.
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(d) Possession Utility:
The marketing function of buying and selling helps in the transfer of
ownership from one person to another.
 Products are transferred through marketing to persons having a higher
utility from persons having a low utility.
 In addition to creation of utilities, marketing also contributes for economic
development.
 From the point of view of economic development, marketing provides
profit motive and the necessary
– input to increase agricultural production
– provides sufficient food for consumers,
– raw material and market for industrial producers.
 For this reason, it has been described as the most important multiplier of
agricultural development.
 AGRIMARKETING FUNCTIONS
Marketing Functions: A marketing function may be defined as a major activity
performed in accomplishing the marketing process.
There are 3 major marketing functions:
a. Exchange functions:
• i. Buying (Assembling)
• ii. Selling
b. Physical Functions:
• i. Storage & Packaging
• ii. Processing
• iii. Transportation & Distribution
c. Facilitating Functions:
– i. Standardization (grading & quality)
– ii. Risk Bearing
– iii. Market Intelligence (advertisement & promotion)
_ iv. Financing
 1. The Exchange Functions
Are those activities involved in the transfer of title of raw and processed
agricultural products and services (food & fiber).
– It involves buying and selling.
– Here price determination is always considered.
• A. Buying (Assembling) function
–
Involves the activities associated with finding out sources of
supply, assembling products and purchases.
• Assembling involves delivering of the farm produce from several
farmers to a central location into a larger lot to enable other
functions in marketing to occur - i.e. massing quantities of farm
products & includes vegetable packing sheds, grain elevators,
livestock sale
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B. Selling function
• Selling occurs in several ways in agricultural marketing and
includes selling of supplies and services to farmers, selling
of farm produce to assemblers & processors; selling of food
& fiber to consumers.
• All these involve price acceptance and merchandising
( i.e. display of goods, decisions on place and time to
approach customers, promotion of goods, providing sample,
preparing private tender or open auction).
• The selling function involves transfer of ownership or
creation of possession utility.
 2. Physical Functions
These are those activities that involve handling,
movements, and physical change of the product.
• They are involved in creating utility or adding value
to the farm produce by solving the problems of
when, what and where in marketing.
A. Packaging Function
• Packaging provides a number of advantages
including protection from weather or
contamination, enhancing handling, providing
information and means of ads, etc.
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B. storage
• Storage is an important marketing function, which involves holding and
preserving goods from the time they are produced until they are needed for
consumption.
• Storage is an exercise of human foresight by means of which commodities
are protected from deterioration, and surplus supplies in times of plenty are
carried over to the season of scarcity.
• The storage function, therefore, adds the time utility to products.
• Agriculture is characterized by relatively large and irregular seasonal and
year to year fluctuations in production.
• The consumption of most farm products, on the other hand, is relatively
stable.
– These conflicting behaviors of demand and supply make it neces 2s6ary that large
quantities of farm produce should be held for a considerable period of time.
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C. Transport & Distribution Functions
• It is making the good available at the proper place. Most of
the goods are not consumed where they are produced.
• Agricultural commodities have to be brought from the farm
to the local market and from there to primary wholesale
markets, secondary wholesale markets, retail markets and
ultimately to the consumers.
• The inputs from the factories must be taken to the
warehouses and from the warehouses to the wholesalers,
retailers and finally to the consumers (farmers).
• Transportation adds the place utility to goods..
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• The main advantages of the transport function are:
• i. Widening of the Market: Transport helps in the development or widening of
markets by bridging the gap between the producers and consumers located in
different areas.
• ii. Narrowing Price Difference over Space:
• iii. Creation of Employment:
– The transport function provides employment to a large number of persons through
the construction of roads, loading and unloading, plying of the means of
transportation, etc.
• iv. Facilitation of Specialized Farming:
– Different areas of the country are suitable for different crops,
• depending on their soil and agro-climatic conditions.
– Farmers can go in for specialization in the commodity most suitable to their area,
and exchange the goods required by them from other areas at a cheaper price than
their own production cost.
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D. Processing
• The processing activity involves a change in the form of the
commodity.
• This function includes all of those essentially manufacturing
activities which change the basic form of the product.
• Processing converts the raw material and brings the products
nearer to human consumption.
• It is concerned with the addition of value to the product by
changing its form.
• Processing also helps to reduce the perishability of
• agricultural products and squeeze their size thereby facilitate
storage and transportation.
 3. Facilitating Functions

• Facilitating functions are the grease that makes the wheels

of marketing process turn.
• They are the functions that make possible the smooth
performance of the exchange and physical functions
• a. Standardization and grading
• Standardization means the determination of the standards
to be established for different commodities.
• Standards are established on the basis of certain
characteristics-such as weight, size, colour, appearance,
texture, moisture content, staple length, amount of foreign
matter, ripeness, sweetness, taste, chemical content, etc.
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• These characteristics, on the basis of which products
are standardized, are termed grade standards.
• Grading is the sorting of the unlike lots of the produce
into different lots according to the quality
specifications laid down.
• Each lot has substantially the same characteristics in
so far as quality is concerned.
• It is a method of dividing products into certain groups
or lots in accordance with predetermined standards.
Grading follows standardization
b. Financing (Capital)
•
Is the provision of capital (money) to carry out the various
aspects of marketing such as storage, transportation, process, etc.
c. Risk Bearing
•
It refers to accepting the possibility of loss in the marketing of
a product. There are physical and market risks.
– Physical risks occur from destruction or deterioration of the product by
fire, accident, wind, cold or heat.
– Market risks occur because of changes in the value of the product - such
as price changes.
• In general risk bearing may be insurance provision in case of
physical risks or utilization of futures in case of price risks, but the
entrepreneur may also bear risks in terms losse3s2 etc.
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• d. Market Intelligence (Advertising and Promotion)
• It is the function of collecting, interpreting and dissemination of
market information.
• Market information is an important marketing function which
ensures the smooth and efficient operation of the marketing
system.
– What to buy and sell, when to store and how much, where to
transport etc. require good market information.
• Market information creates a competitive market process and
checks the growth of monopoly or profiteering by individuals.
• Market information is of two types- market intelligence and
market news.
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• The first includes information relating to such facts as the
prices that prevailed in the past and market arrivals over
time.
• It is therefore, of historical nature.
• An analysis of the past helps us to take decision about the
future.
• The second type of market information (market news)
refers to current information about prices, arrivals and
changes in market conditions.
• This information helps the farmer in taking decisions
about when and where to sell his produce
 MARKET FUNCTIONARIES

• Marketing functionaries /marketing agencies are those who

actually perform the marketing functions. The following
functionaries commonly involve in marketing of agricultural
products.
1. Producers
• Most farmers or producers, perform one or more marketing
functions.
• They sell the surplus either in the village or in the market. Some
farmers, especially the large ones, assemble the produce of small
farmers, transport it to the nearby market, sell it there and make
a profit.
• This activity helps these farmers to supplement their incomes
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2.Middlemen
• Middlemen are those individuals or business concerns which
specialize in performing the various marketing functions and
rendering such services as are involved in the marketing of
goods.
• They do this at different stages in the marketing process.
• The middlemen in agricultural marketing may, therefore, be
classified as follows.
(a) Merchant Middlemen: Merchant middlemen are those
individuals who take title to the goods they handle. They buy and
sell on their own and gain or lose, depending on the difference in
the sale and purchase prices.
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i. Country Buyers: These buyers undertake the initial task of
assembling produce from farms or local country markets.
– They may be farmers who collect the produce of other cultivators,
landlords, itinerant traders, cooperatives, wholesale merchants
and processors, cooperatives or government procurement
agencies.
ii. Wholesalers: Wholesalers are those merchant middlemen
who buy and sell food grains in large quantities.

iii. Retailers: The function of the retailer is to obtain supplies

and display them for sale in forms, time and places convenient
for consumers.
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(b) Agent Middlemen:
• Agent middlemen act as representatives of their clients. They do not take title to
the produce and, therefore, do not own it. They merely negotiate the purchase
and/or sale.
• They sell services to their principals and not the goods or commodities. They
receive income in the form of commission or brokerage.
• They serve as buyers or sellers in effective bargaining.
• Agent middlemen are of two types: commission 38
• agents and brokers
i. Commission Agents: commission agents act as the representative of either a seller
or a buyer.
– They take charge of the goods on behalf of buyer or sellers on demand but do not bear
any risk.
– Commission agents receive a percentage of the price
• obtained or paid.
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ii. Brokers: Brokers render personal services to their clients in the market; but unlike the
commission agents, they do not have physical control of the product.
– The main function of a broker is to bring together buyers
• and sellers on the same platform for negotiations.
– Their charge is called brokerage.
– They may claim brokerage from the buyer, the seller or both, depending on the market
situa3t9ion
• and the service rendered.
•

(c)Speculative Middlemen
• Those middlemen who take title to the product with a view to making a profit on it
are called speculative middlemen.
• They are not regular buyers or sellers of produce. They specialize in risk – taking.
• They buy at low prices when arrivals are substantial and sell in the off – season
when prices are high. They do the minimum handling of goods.
• They make profit from short-run as well as long-run price fluctuations.
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(d)Facilitative Middlemen
• Some middlemen do not buy and sell directly but assist in the marketing
process.
• Marketing can take place even if they are not active. But the efficiency of
the system increases when they engage in business.
• These middlemen receive their income in the form of fees or service
charges from those who use their services
The important facilitative middlemen are:
i. Laborers: They perform such physical tasks in the marketing process as
loading and unloading, cleaning, filling and stitching the bags, etc.
ii. Graders: These middlemen sort out the product into different grades, based
on some defined characteristics, and arrange them for sale. They facilitate the
process of prices settlement between the buyer and the seller. Example; the
Ethiopian commodity exchange (ECX)
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iii. Transport Agency: This agency assists in the movement of the produce
from one market to another.
iv. Communication Agency: It helps in the communication of the information
about the prices prevailing, and quantity available, in the market.
• The post and telegraph, telephone, newspapers, the radio, television,
internet and informal links are the main communication channels in
agricultural marketing.
• v. Advertising Agency: It enables prospective buyers to know the
quality of the product and decide about the purchase of commodities.
Newspapers, the radio, cinema slides, television and internet are the
main media for advertisements.
• vi. Auctioners: They help in exchange function by putting the produce for
auction and bidding by the buyers.
 MARKETING CHANNELS
• Marketing channels are routes through which agricultural
products move from producers to consumers.
• The length of the channel varies from commodity to
commodity, depending on the quantity to be moved, the form
of consumer demand and degree of regional specialization in
production.
• Marketing channels for agricultural products vary from
product to product, country to country, lot to lot and time to
time.
• For example, the marketing channels for fruits are different
from those for food grains. Packagers play a crucial role in the
marketing of fruits.
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 The level of the development of a society or country determines
the final form in which consumers demand the product.
For example, consumers in developed
• countries demand more processed foods in a packed form.
Wheat has to be supplied in the form of bread.
• The distribution channel for agricultural products may take either
of the following routes:
1. Producer or manufacturer – Retailer – Consumer.
2. Producer or manufacturer – Consumer.
3. Producer or manufacturer – Wholesaler– Retailer – Consumer.
• Wholesaler is most important functionary in the chain of
distribution of goods.
 MARKET INTEGRATION
• Market integration is a process in which firms expand by combining
additional marketing functions and activities under a single
management.
Example: Setting up of milk processing plant, establishment of wholesale
facilities by retailers, etc.
• Integration influences market conduct of firms and consequently
their marketing efficiency.
• Integration renders the following advantages:
a). Assure supplies and outlets, thus reducing business risk and
marketing costs;
b). Improve the bargaining power of the seller either through handling
large volume of business or having more alternative market and
service opportunities;
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c). Economies scale through making fuller use of
management and resources already available, and from
advertisement and promotion

Types of market integration

• 1. Horizontal integration
• This form of integration occurs when a firm gains control
over other firms, performing similar marketing functions.
-Some marketing agencies (say, sellers) combine to
form a union with a view to reducing their effective number
and the extent of competition in the market.
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• Horizontal integration is advantageous for the members who join the
group but may jeopardize the interest of consumers or buyers.
• If farmers join hands and form cooperatives, they are able to sell their
produce in bulk and reduce their cost of marketing
2. Vertical integration
• This form of integration occurs when a firm performs more than one
activity in the sequence of the marketing process.
– It is linking together of two a more functions within a single
• firm or under a single ownership.
• Vertical integration leads to some economies in the cost of marketing.
• It provides greater market power for the integrated firm while reducing
the number of middlemen in the market.
• There are two types of vertical integration: forward integration when the
firm incorporates subsequent marketing functions and backward
integration when the firm accommodates preceding functions.
 MARKETING EFFICIENCY
• Marketing efficiency is essentially the degree of market performance.
• It is the ratio of market output (satisfaction) to marketing input (cost of
resources).
• An increment in the ratio represents improvement in efficiency and vice
versa.
• It can also be defined as the maximization of participant’s satisfaction with
the least cost incurred in providing that satisfaction through the system of
marketing.
Components of marketing efficiency
• 1. Technical or Physical or Operational efficiency:
– It pertains to the cost of performing a function;
– Efficiency is increased when the cost of performing a function per unit of
output is reduced.
• Eg: - Storage processing, handling etc.
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2. Pricing / Allocative efficiency:
 System is able to allocate farm products either over time,
across the space or among the traders, processors and
consumers at a point of time in such as way that no other
allocation would make producers and consumers better
off.
 Pricing efficiency refers to the structural characteristics of
the marketing system, when the sellers are able to get
the true value of their produce and the consumers
receive true worth of their money.
 Marketing Costs And Margins
• The movement of products from the producers to the ultimate
consumers involves costs, taxes, and fees which is called marketing
costs.
• Marketing costs are incurred by marketing enterprises to carryout
marketing functions.
• Marketing costs would normally include:
– Handling charges at local point
– Assembling charges
– Transport and storage costs
– Handling by wholesaler and retailer charges to customers
– Expenses on secondary service like financing, risk taking and market
intelligence
– Profit margins taken out by different agencies.
• Producer’s share in consumer’s price:
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• Margin refers to the difference between the price paid and
received by a specific marketing agency, such as a single
retailer, or by any type of marketing agency such as retailers
or assemblers or by any combination of marketing agencies
such as the marketing system as a whole.
• Marketing margin depends on the marketing costs in such a
way that higher marketing costs imply higher marketing
margin.
• This is because the marketing margin should at least cover
the marketing cost and for a private marketing enterprise, the
marketing margin should further provide an acceptable
profit.
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Ways of reducing marketing costs of farm products.
1. Increased efficiency in a wide range of activities between
produces and consumers such as increasing the volume of
business, improved handling methods in pre-packing, storage
and transportation, adopting new managerial techniques and
changes in marketing practices such as value addition,
retailing etc.
2. Reducing profits in marketing at various stages.
3. Reducing the risks adopting hedging.
4. Improvements in marketing intelligence.
5. Increasing the competition in marketing of farm products.
 Agricultural Price Stabilization
• Most of agricultural commodities in developing countries
constitute the basic purchases of consumers.
• Producers may also be victims of their surplus production
during times of favourable production or harvesting seasons.
• Hence, the fact that the supply of agricultural products is
seasonal and volatile have important bearing on the living of
many people.
• Moreover, the marketing channel may be unnecessarily long
and marketing cost/margin is very high as result of which
consumers are paying exaggerated prices while producers
are not getting their fair share.
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• These marketing problems call for price stabilization policy.
• Governments take the responsibility to stabilize agricultural
prices.
• The mechanisms of price stabilization by the government may
different forms such as:
– procurement operations,
– public distribution at fixed issue prices,
– rationing,
– restrictions on movement of food grains from one place to another
place and
– direct price control (setting price ceiling to protect consumers or
price floor to protect producers).
END OF CHAPER FOUR

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