Article: Factors influencing market channels selection for small and marginal vegetable farmers in Kerala, India Journal: International Journal of Value Chain Management (IJVCM) 2024 Vol.15 No.1 pp.98 - 118 Abstract: Selecting a market channel for fresh vegetables is crucial for farmers to guarantee a steady supply of vegetables, which impacts customer buying habits. Thus, it is essential to study factors that influence the selection of market channels for small and marginal vegetable farmers, particularly in developing and emerging economies like India. The study aims to investigate the significant factors affecting small and marginal farmers' choice of market channels. Two hundred valid survey responses were evaluated for factors based on the farmer preferences in market channel selection. A binary logistic regression is done to find the critical factors influencing channel selection. Machine learning methods, like KNN, NB, SVM, RF, and ANN, are further used to predict the selection of sales channels. The results show that quantity produced, distance to market, and profit obtained largely influence the market channel choice for small and marginal vegetable farmers. The research offers valuable insights into small and marginal vegetable farmers' market channel selection process. It enables policymakers to propose strategies to encourage the farmers to select the right market channel to sell their produce to improve their income and livelihood. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: Factors influencing market channels selection for small and marginal vegetable farmers in Kerala, India

Authors: Sreerag Ravindranath Sreedevi; Prasanna Venkatesan Shanmugam

Addresses: Production Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli, India ' Production Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli, India

Abstract: Selecting a market channel for fresh vegetables is crucial for farmers to guarantee a steady supply of vegetables, which impacts customer buying habits. Thus, it is essential to study factors that influence the selection of market channels for small and marginal vegetable farmers, particularly in developing and emerging economies like India. The study aims to investigate the significant factors affecting small and marginal farmers' choice of market channels. Two hundred valid survey responses were evaluated for factors based on the farmer preferences in market channel selection. A binary logistic regression is done to find the critical factors influencing channel selection. Machine learning methods, like KNN, NB, SVM, RF, and ANN, are further used to predict the selection of sales channels. The results show that quantity produced, distance to market, and profit obtained largely influence the market channel choice for small and marginal vegetable farmers. The research offers valuable insights into small and marginal vegetable farmers' market channel selection process. It enables policymakers to propose strategies to encourage the farmers to select the right market channel to sell their produce to improve their income and livelihood.

Keywords: market channel; small and marginal farmers; fresh vegetables; binary logistic regression; machine learning; India.

DOI: 10.1504/IJVCM.2024.140373

International Journal of Value Chain Management, 2024 Vol.15 No.1, pp.98 - 118

Received: 17 Jan 2024
Accepted: 27 May 2024
Published online: 05 Aug 2024 *

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Title: Factors influencing market channels selection for small and marginal vegetable farmers in Kerala, India

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