PROFITABILITY OF PLANTAIN PRODUCTION (Musa Spp) IN RIVERS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study examined the profitability of plantain production in Rivers State, Nigeria. A multi-staged sampling method was employed to select 240 plantain producers. Descriptive statistics including mean, frequency, percentages and budgetary analysis were employed. From the result, males (60.40%) dominated plantain production, with an average age of 46 years, majority of plantain farmers (60.41%) were married, 94.17% had some kind of education, the average household size was 5 persons, and the farmers' average farming experience was 14 years. Additionally, the majority of farmers (56.67%) had a typical farm size of 0.78 hectares and used both family and hired labour. In terms of estimated cost and returns related to plantain cultivation, the overall production cost amounted to ₦ 482,010.27, while the total realized revenue was ₦ 1,638,000, resulting in a net income of ₦ 1,155,989.75. The analysis showed that it was profitable to produce plantains The main factors militating against plantain production are low market value, poor quality roads, insufficient land, The study concluded that plantain production in the study area was dominated by small scale farmers. The study recommended that farmers should increase their farm size thereby increase their output.