Abstract:
Tomato is one of the most popular and widely grown vegetables in the
Gezira scheme. However the southern section of Gezira scheme is consider
as one of the main producing areas of the tomato in Gezira scheme.
Tomato production is highly seasonality and perishability. Its
production in the Sudan is mainly limited to winter season. Poor harvest
practices and management resulted in about 30 to 40% loss in the crop yield
The seasonality in production of tomato resulted in variability in
prices, together with increasing surpluses of production this price variability
might have resulted in lower profit to tomato producer in different areas of
the southern section Gezira scheme, and all these mentioned factors
considered as a problems of tomato production.
The main objective is to study the economics of tomato production in
southern section of Gezira scheme. Specifically the study is intended to
describe the socio-economic characteristics of tomato producers, to estimate
cost of tomato production and marketing under different technical packages
and to determine factors that affect tomato production and cost. Moreover the
study intended to drive from the study some recommendations and
suggestions for future research tomato production and marketing. The study
depends mainly on primary data which were collected by direct interviewing
of tomato producers by means of questionnaire. The survey was carried out
during the period June to July, 2010. Other sources of information such as
published journals, ministry of agricultural .etc. were also used as a
secondary source data. Descriptive statistics, regression analysis and crop
budget were used for data analysis.
The study found that, tomatoes producers were homogenous, since almost all
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of them were sharing same characteristics. Two factors have positive effect
on tomato production, fertilizer and irrigation. The main cost items of tomato
production in Southern section of Gezira scheme were transportation,
fertilizers, pesticide and tins; it was found that the crop is profitable at the
producer level according to the coefficient of private profitability.
To improve tomato production in southern section of Gezira scheme study
recommended that to extend adequate amount of loans to small farmers,
provide modern inputs, to solve the problem of attack new insects, to create
an effecting marketing system, to improve and strength the agricultural
extension, also processing of tomato need to be addressed seriously study.
