MSc

The present study entitled “An economic analysis of production and marketing of turmeric
in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh” was carried out in Palakkad district of Kerala and Visakhapatnam
district of Andhra Pradesh. The specific objectives of the study were to study economics, input use
pattern and resource use efficiency of turmeric cultivation in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, to
estimate the marketing efficiency and to analyse the constraints in production and marketing of
turmeric.
Both primary and secondary data were used to examine the specific objectives of the study.
Palakkad district and Visakhapatnam district were purposively selected as these districts were the
major producer of turmeric in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, respectively.Alathur and
Kuzhalmannam blocks of Palakkad district and Chinthapalli and G Madugula blocks of
Visakhapatnam districts were purposively selected based on high acreage and production of
turmeric. From the selected block panchayath, one grama panchayath was selected based on high
acreage and production of turmeric. Finally, 35 farmers were randomly selected from the selected
panchayats in the Visakhapatnam district, and 15 farmers were randomly selected from the
selected panchayats in the Palakkad district. Apart from these, 10 market intermediaries from
Palakkad district and 20 from Visakhapatnam district were selected to elicit market-related
information.
The total operational cost of turmeric was Rs. 1,74,430 in Palakkad district and Rs.
1,14,022 in Visakhapatnam district. In total operational cost, 71.63 per cent was attributed to the
labour cost in Palakkad district, whereas it was 42.19 per cent in Visakhapatnam district. The low
share of labour cost was mainly due to the low wage rate prevailing in the Visakhapatnam region.
The total fixed cost for the cultivation of turmeric was Rs. 26,794 in Palakkad and Rs. 10,480 in
Visakhapatnam. The gross income from turmeric was Rs. 2,70,000 in Palakkad district, whereas
it was Rs. 1,68,000 in Visakhapatnam district.
The total cost of cultivation (cost C) of turmeric incurred by the farmers in Palakkad and
Visakhapatnam districts was observed to be Rs. 2,01,224ha-1 and Rs. 1,24,410ha-1 respectively.
The net return at cost C for Palakkad and Visakhapatnam farmers was Rs. 68,775 ha1
and Rs.
43,589 ha1
, respectively. The estimated Benefit- Cost (BC) ratio was almost equal in both districts
i.e., 1.34 in Palakkad and 1.35 in Visakhapatnam district.
Analysis of input use patterns in turmeric cultivation revealed that the total labour required
to perform various operations in turmeric cultivation was 241 man-days and 160 man-days,
respectively, for Palakkad and Visakhapatnam districts. In Palakkad district, the major labour
absorbing operation was harvesting and it accounted for about 34.69 per cent of total labour
requirement, followed by land preparation, curing, and intercultural operations. Similarly, in the
Visakhapatnam district, harvesting operation also required more number labours and it accounted
for 27.72 per cent of the total workforce, followed by planting, weeding, and irrigation.
Resource use efficiency in turmeric cultivation was estimated using the Cobb-Douglas
production function, and it was fitted separately for Palakkad and Visakhapatnam districts. In
Palakkad district, the independent variables like area, number of labourers, farmyard manure and
muriate of potash were significantly and positively affected the yield of turmeric. While in
Visakhapatnam district, area, seed and machine service were significantly and positively
influenced the yield of turmeric.
Allocative efficiency was examined to know whether the resources in the farm were
efficiently utilized or not. Marginal productivity analysis showed that resources like farmyard
manure, labour and muriate of potash were underutilized, whereas the resources like factomphos
and lime were over-utilized in Palakkad district. Similarly, in the Visakhapatnam district, seed and
machine services were having greater potentiality for further use as these resources were
underutilized in the study area.
Among the two identified channels in Palakkad district, channel-II (Producers - Trader cum
semi processors - Processor cum primary wholesaler- Retailers) was the most preferred channel
among producers due to its relatively low marketing cost, marketing margin and high marketing
efficiency. Three marketing channels were identified in the Visakhapatnam district. Among three,
Channel I (Producer- village merchant- trader cum semi processor- processor cum semi
wholesaler- retailer- consumer) was the predominant marketing channel in the study area.
Although Channel I was the dominant marketing channel, Channel III (Producer- trader cum semi
processor- processor cum semi wholesaler- retailer- consumer) was the most efficient channel due
to its low marketing cost and marketing margin.
High wage rates and shortage of labour were considered as the major production constraints
faced by the turmeric farmers in the Palakkad district. While in Visakhapatnam district, lack of
remunerative price and lack of suitable machinery services for different operations were the major
production constraints faced by the farmers. In the case of marketing, price fluctuations and
inadequate storage and marketing facilities were the important constraints faced by the farmers
and traders.
Turmeric cultivation is found to be profitable in both districts, hence government may take
suitable measures to bring more land under turmeric cultivation through area expansion
programmes and such other programmes. To address the problem of labour shortage, incorporate
agricultural operations in the ‘MGNREGA’ programme and may also be addressed with the use
of low-cost machinery hence policies may be formulated to provide suitable machinery for the
farmers through respective Krishi Bhavans. Strengthen the infrastructure facilities near the
production sites and facilitate the farmers to perform on-farm post-harvest handling operations
through the formation of several Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs). The establishment of a
regulated market in the Visakhapatnam district may help the farmers to realize a better price for
the produce by eliminating the involvement of market mediators.