Determinants of Wheat Market Supply in Sinana District

In Ethiopia, cereal production and marketing are the means of livelihood for millions of small holder households and it constitutes the single largest sub-sector in economy. Wheat is among the most important crops in Ethiopia, ranking fourth in total cereals production 13.25% (1.63 million hectares) next to maize, sorghum and teff. Even though there has been an increase in agricultural production, there were drawbacks in the absence of many households participation in the markets. As Bale zone is one of surplus wheat producer in the country, this study was proposed with the objective of identifying factors determining of wheat supply to market in Sinana district of Bale zone. Primary data were collected from120 randomly selected wheat producers and 37 wheat traders. Descriptive and multiple regression were used for analysis. The result indicates that volume of wheat supplied to market is influenced positively and significantly by quantity of wheat produced, livestock ownership (TLU) and total area of farmland owned by farmers. Therefore, in order to enhance volume of wheat supplied to market, these variables should get attention and promoted. Increasing surplus production through promotion of appropriate input technologies such as seed of improved varieties, recommended fertilizer rates, pesticides and other appropriate agronomic recommendations can improve production and productivity of wheat in the study area. Livestock categories like oxen, small ruminants and equines are used as better input that supports wheat production and this lead to surplus produce by farmers in the study area. Keywords: Wheat, market supply, multiple regression, Sinana DOI: 10.7176/JESD/12-7-02 Publication date: April 30th 202