Analysis of Yam Marketing in Akoko North-East Local Government Area of Ondo State, Nigeria IJAM Analysis of Yam Marketing in Akoko North-East Local Government Area of Ondo State, Nigeria Rabirou Kassali 1* , Abdulhameed Abana Girei 2 and Ismaila Dauda Sanu 3 1 Department of Agricultural Economics, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria 2,3 Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Nigeria The study analysed the marketing of yam in Akoko North East Local Government Area of Ondo State. It specifically described the socio-economic characteristics of yam marketers and determined the marketing margin, marketing cost, markup, operational efficiency and the constraints faced by yam marketers in the area. Data used for the study were generated through the administration of structured questionnaire. A total of 90 respondents comprising of 30 yam wholesalers and 60 retailers, were randomly sampled from three purposively selected major yam markets. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Concentration Ratio, Gini Coefficient and Operational Efficiency Model. The results showed variation in marketing cost, marketing margin, marketing profit, and markup for both wholesale and retail yam markets. Gini Coefficients of 0.307 and 0.307 were obtained for wholesaler and retailer respectively. This indicated high level of competition in the industry. Retailers were more operationally efficient than wholesalers, but wholesalers’ marketing profit and markup were higher than that of retailers. Wholesalers complained of insecurity, price uncertainty, high cost of yam and, transportation cost. Also, high capital requirement is considered as a serious constraint, while retailers complained of high cost of yam, price uncertainty, capital intensity and insecurity as very serious constraints. Alleviating some of the challenges, would therefore lead to more efficiency in yam business, while improving on the welfare of yam marketers. Keywords: yam, wholesaling, retailing, market structure, marketing performance INTRODUCTION Yam (Dioscorea spp) is an herbaceous vine that grows under tropical climates around the world. It is a tuberous root whose skin colour varies from dark brown to light pink (Huxley, 1992) with size varying from an average 2.5 kg to 5 kg (Kay, 1987) according to varieties and growing conditions. It is a starchy tuber rich in carbohydrates, with flesh colour ranging from white to purple, through yellow or pink (Huxley, 1992). According to FAO (2014), the world output of yam is estimated at 68.1 million tones on a total cultivated land area of 7.8 million ha, corresponding to an average yield of 8.8 t/ha. Nigeria is the largest producer of yams with about 45 million tonnes in 2014, representing 66 percent of world output. According USDA Nutrient Database, Yam is an important source of nutrients. One hundred (100g) gram of yam contain 494kj of energy, 27.9g of carbohydrates and 4.1g of dietary fiber. Yam is also an important source of minerals (Potassium, Calcium, Phosphorous, Magnesium, etc.) and vitamins (Vitamins; C, B complex, folate.). It is characterized by low glycemic index (Atkinson et al., 2008) and constitutes one of the most readily available crop based healthy protein among the poor in tropical areas, most especially in Nigeria. Yam provides about 200 calories of energy per day per capita (Babaleye, 2003). In term of recipes, yam is eaten as roasted, fried, boiled, boiled and pounded; it can be cut and dried into chips and powdered, etc. *Corresponding author: Dr. Rabirou Kassali, Department of Agricultural Economics, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. Zip code: 220282, Ife Central. E-mail: rkassali@oauife.edu.ng; kasskassali@yahoo.com International Journal of Agricultural Marketing Research Article Vol. 5(1), pp. 170-177, February, 2018. © www.premierpublishers.org ISSN2114-2734