Production Efficiency and Market Development of Peanuts and Peanut Products for Haiti, Dominican Republic, and Jamaica

Approach

The goal of AUB 30S was to survey households in production areas to study farming systems, farmer production constraints, and marketing constraints in order to recommend changes in the systems that would enhance peanut productivity and profits.

Achievements

A farm survey was completed with 842 households in Haiti. The study showed that drought caused low yields and was the major constraint to peanut production. Likewise, the study showed that the major marketing constraints were storage losses and low prices. Other findings were; a) farmers felt that they could sell more peanuts if they were available through increased productivity; b) peanuts generated a substantial portion of household income and were highly competitive with other enterprises for the farmer’s resources; and c) by storing their crops and selling six months after harvest, farmers were able to double their net returns.

Focus

Socioeconomic forces