Identification of strategies to improve goat marketing in the lowlands of Ethiopia: a hedonic price analysis

Asresu Yitayew, Yigezu A. Yigezu, Girma Kassie (), Tilaye T. Deneke, Aynalem Haile, Halima Hassen and Barbara Rischkowsky

Applied Economics, 2019, vol. 51, issue 1, 61-75

Abstract: This article aims at identifying factors that determine market prices of goats and analyse potential mechanisms by which smallholder goat producers could maximize their benefits. Data on 357 farm households and 2103 goat transactions were collected in three major goat markets in the lowlands of Ethiopia. Hedonic price models adjusted for heteroscedasticity were employed to analyse the observed price data. Model results showed the relative importance of different factors in determining goat prices. Animal attributes including age, sex, live weight, body condition and presence of horn as well as types of buyer and market outlet targeted and time of selling were found to be important. Particularly, goats marketed during festive periods where demand for meat increases (e.g. Ethiopian New Year) command higher prices. These results imply that interventions such as systematic selection schemes targeting traits demanded by the market, improved linkages to markets, easy access to market information systems and creating conducive environment including incentive mechanisms can enhance smallholder farmers’ and pastoralists’ ability to take advantage of seasonal and spatial price changes and become market responsive with effective marketing strategies. Such changes can be potent in improving the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and pastoralists.

Date: 2019
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/00036846.2018.1490693 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:applec:v:51:y:2019:i:1:p:61-75

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/RAEC20

DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2018.1490693

Access Statistics for this article

Applied Economics is currently edited by Anita Phillips

More articles in Applied Economics from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().