Profit efficiency of Egusi melon (Colocynthis citrullus var. lanatus) production in Bida local government area of Niger state, Nigeria

The study applied a stochastic frontier profit function to measure profit efficiency of Egusi melon farmers’ in Bida LGA of Niger State, Nigeria, there by examining the opportunities available to the farmers in the LGA. A multistage sampling technique was used to select a total of 125 Egusi melon farmers’ from Bida LGA. The average profit efficiency of 87 percent indicates that an estimated 13 percent of the profit was lost owing to a mixture of both technical and allocative inefficiencies in Egusi melon production. In other words, profit efficiency among the sample farmers can be increased by 13 percent through improved use of existing production resources, given the current state of technology. From the inefficiency model, it was found that education, farm experience, access to credit, membership of cooperative, soil management techniques and extension contact were positively significant factors influencing profit efficiency. Consequently, investments in farmers’ education through effective extension delivery programmes and provision of credit will help farmers’ to increase their profit efficiency.