MARKETING AND ESTIMATION OF POST HARVEST LOSSES OF POTATO IN BANASKANTHA DISTRICT OF GUJARAT

HARESH CHAVDA¹*, P. B. MARVIYA², V.D. TARPARA³, V.A. SAVALIA^4
1Department of Agricultural Economics, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, 362001
²Department of Agricultural Economics, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, 362001
³Department of Agricultural Economics, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, 362001
⁴Department of Plant Pathology, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, 362001
* Corresponding Author : harsh_genx@yahoo.co.in

Received : 09-07-2016     Accepted : 22-08-2016     Published : 30-10-2016
Volume : 8     Issue : 52       Pages : 2420 - 2422
Int J Agr Sci 8.52 (2016):2420-2422

Keywords : Sampling, Data Collection, Marketing Channels
Academic Editor : Dr Kanani P R
Conflict of Interest : None declared
Acknowledgements/Funding : None declared
Author Contribution : None declared

Potato is the most important food crop of the world. It is being cultivated in the country for the last 300 years. For vegetable purposes, it has now become one of the most popular crops in India. In India, about 85 per cent of potatoes are cultivated in Indo-gangetic plains of North India. India produced 46.39 million tonnes, with Uttar Pradesh contributed 32 per cent, followed by West Bengal 26, Bihar 14, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Punjab 5 per cent, accounted for 87 per cent of the total production in 2013-14. Keeping in view the non-availability of systematic studies on post harvest loss, a study was undertaken in one of the leading potato growing state of Gujarat to assess the post harvest loss (PHL) at different level of handling. The total PHL was observed to be about 15 per cent consisting of 4.60 per cent at field level, about 3 to 4 per cent at cold storage level, 2 to 3 per cent at market level and about 5 per cent at the retail level. The diseases and pests were the major causal factors at the field level and the cold injury and the diseases at the cold storage level. At the market level, crushing and physical damages during transportation were the major reason of PHL. At retail level, diseases caused by secondary infection, over ripe and rotten tubers and injuries to tubers due to pressing were the major causes of loss. Since the marketing cost is less and the price realized by producer is more in channel-I as compared to channel-II, selling though channel-I is desirable to take advantage of higher price realization.