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Determinants of Tomato Farmers Efficiency in Mymensingh District of Bangladesh: Data Envelopment Analysis Approach

Sandip Mitra
Department of Agricultural Finance, Faculty of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh – 2202, Bangladesh

Muhammad Yunus
Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh – 2202, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Tomato is one of the major vegetables in Bangladesh that experienced massive productivity growth after independence. Nevertheless, farmers are struggling to find out optimal input combination in their farm that causes inefficient input use. Therefore, this study estimated the factors affecting efficiency of tomato farmers in Mymensingh of Bangladesh. Input oriented Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was employed for measuring efficiency while Tobit regression model was used to estimate the factors affecting efficiency. A total of 60 tomato farmers were selected using random sampling technique. Mean technical efficiency for tomato farmers was 0.83 implies that tomato farmers can reduce their input use by 17%. Education, training and high yielding variety adoption had positive effect on efficiency while age of tomato farmer’s had negative effect on efficiency. Efficiency increased with the farmer’s education, training and variety adoption. Farmer’s adopting local high yielding variety was more efficient than that of exotic high yielding variety. In addition, efficiency of farmers reduced with their age. Improvement of tomato farmer’s efficiency is possible if farmers received education, training and local high yielding variety.

Keywords: Tomato, Efficiency, Data Envelopment Analysis, Bangladesh

Location: Mymensingh district

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Socio-economic and Policy

Non-commodity: Efficiency

Objectives:

This study tried to estimate the efficiency level of tomato producer and factors affecting efficiency.

Methodology:

Sampling procedure and data description Mymensingh district was selected purposively because of concentrations of tomato farmers. Tomato production has increased about 98% within last 8 years in Mymensingh that becomes 6800 MT in 2014-15 (BBS, 2015-16). A total of sixty sample respondents of tomato farmers were selected by using random sampling techniques. Cross-section data were collected from these respondents using questionnaires and direct interview method. Information was collected about input used in production process, the output produced, socioeconomic characteristics of farmers, cost of inputs and return from output. Input and output variables were used for the measurement of technical efficiency. Total output of tomato farms was the output variable which was measured in kg per hectare. Input variables were labor man days, seed cost, fertilizer cost, pesticides cost, irrigation cost, land rent and power tiller cost which were measured in Bangladeshi taka. Labor input was the summation of both family and hired labor and eight hours are considered as one man day (Khan, 2017; Iliyasu and Mohamed, 2016; Alam et al., 2012). Because of quality and price variation, different input’s costs were used for efficiency measurement instead of quantity of inputs. Different socio-economic factors that may influence technical efficiency. The determinants of efficiency were age, education, family members, training, experience, extension service and high yielding variety adoption. Age, education and experience were presented in years while Training, extension service and high yielding variety adoption were presented as dummy. Farmers who had received training and had contract with extension services provider were denoted by 1 and who has no training and extension services denoted by 0. Farmer’s who adopted local high yielding tomato variety (BINA tomato-2, BINA TOMATO-3, BINA TOMATO-4, BARI F1 Tomato-4 and BARI F1 Tomato-5) denoted as 1 and 0 for other exotic high yielding variety adopters. Besides these, farmers were using different exotic high yielding varieties like Lali, Nayak, Delta, Mintoo super and Success (Ali et al., 2014) denoted as 0. Analytical Technique Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to measure the efficiency and Tobit regression was employed to find out the determinants of technical efficiency. DEA is a powerful tool for measuring efficiency which was first introduced by Charnes, Cooper, and Rhodes in 1978. DEA has huge application in the field of agriculture (Khoshroo et al., 2013; Poudel et al. 2012; Murthy et al., 2009; Bravo-Ureta & Pinheiro, 1997). DEA can handle multiple inputs and multiple outputs. Input oriented variable returns to scale was used to analyze the technical efficiency of tomato farms. Tomato farms were different in size and production technology varies from farm to farm. It is much easier to control inputs than controlling outputs. Therefore, input-oriented variable returns to scale is better than output-oriented model.

Source of Information: J Bangladesh Agril Univ 16(1): 93–97, 2018 ISSN 1810-3030 (Print) 2408-8684 (Online)

Article Link (Online Journal): doi: 10.3329/jbau.v16i1.36487

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

This study tried to estimate the efficiency level and factors affecting efficiency of tomato producer in Mymensingh district of Bangladesh. Result found that tomato farmers were not entirely efficient. Their average efficiency score was 0.83 implies that farmers could reduce their input use by 17%. Since farmers were operating under the frontier, there is a vast room for efficiency improvement. Moreover, lack of training and education exacerbates the inefficiency. Training, education and local high yielding variety adoption have positive and significant effect on farmers’ efficiency while age of tomato farmers has negative effect on efficiency. This study will help the tomato producers to facilitate the optimal input use that assist them to reduce the input cost and increase productivity of tomato. It also shows the significance of different socio-economic characteristics such as training, education, age and high yielding local variety adoption. As inputs were used inefficiently, farmers have to follow proper input management practices. Training and extension facility is not sufficient as needed in Bangladesh. Therefore, government needs to ensure quality training and extension facility for vegetable farmers. Extension agents and training personnel can encourage the vegetable farmers to adopt new technology that assist them to increase productivity and efficiency. Most of the cases, aged farmers shows risk averse attitude for receiving new technology but more extension facility / service can change their attitude towards risk. Farmers should be encouraged to use local high yielding variety instead of exotic high yielding variety.

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