International Journal of Horticulture 2015, Vol.5, No.10, 1
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Table 1 Farmers’ ranking of risk sources in Iwo zone (n = 100)
Risk Sources
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10 11 12
13 14 15 *
**
Production risk
Bad
weather
5
0
0
3
0
8 5
6
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
27
16
Lack of improved
varieties
0
0
0
0
0
0 0
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
5
0
Poor storage
0
0
2
0
0
4 0
3
2
1
3
0
0
0
0
15
60
Pests and diseases
9
6
8 10 12 13 5
5
6
3
4
5
4
5
5 100
58
Wind
5 10
10 18 19
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
62
62
Price risk
Input prices
5
8
6
8
5 10 3
6
3
4
2
6
1
1
2
70
42
Output prices
0
0
0
5 10 15 5
5
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
45
30
Social risk
Unsecured land tenure
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Theft
6 20
9 15 10
3 8
8
1
4
0
0
0
0
0
84
63
Fire hazard
5
4
3
6
2
1 4
3
4
2
1
2
3
4
1
45
21
Ill health
15
0
0
0
0
0 0
3
5
6
2
0
0
0
0
16
0
Non-availability of labor
15 17
8 20
3
8 9
0
0
2
1
2
0
0
0
85
71
Shortage of capital
30 20
30 20
0
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0 100 100
Inadequate suckers
0
0
0
0
0
0 0
0
0
3
6
14
2
2
0
27
0
Poor transportation
Financial risk
20
0
15
0
24
0
3
0
5
0
2
0
2
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
74
0
69
0
Source –Field survey, 2013.
* Number of respondents mentioning each risk source
** Number of respondents ranking each risk source among the most
important six. For example eight five respondents mentioned labor
non-availability as a risk source but only seventy one put it the most important.
Table 1a: Relative importance of sources of risk in Iwozone
Source of Risk
Mean
Percentage
Index*
Rank
Shortage of capital
4.60
30
138.0
1
Poor transportation
3.12
20
62.4
2
Non-availability of labour
2.81
15
42.15
3
Pests and diseases
1.83
9
16.47
4
Theft
2.40
6
14.40
5
Wind
1.82
5
9.10
6
Input prices
1.38
5
6.90
7
Fire hazard
0.85
5
4.25
8
Bad weather
0.47
5
2.35
9
Source: Field Survey, 2013
*Mean X percentage.
bad weather was rated as the least important factor.
This shows that shortage of capital, poor transportation
system and non- availability of labor were the most
serious problems confronting plantain farmers in the
zones.
Risk sources cause adversity in yield, prices and
production units. Each or any combination of the
outcomes of the risk sources (poor yield, poor prices,
inadequate production units) lead to low farm income.
Farmers take actions to reduce risk by the production,
marketing, and financial organizational arrangements
of the farm business (Boehije & Trede 1977). There
are several strategies that risk - averse farm operators
can use to reduce the farm exposure to business and
financial risks. A number of the risk management
strategies and the proportions of plantain farmers
adopting each are presented in Table 3. A well-known
risk management strategy by which farmers can share
risks with others is to buy insurance for a specified
