Value Chain Analysis of Tomato: A Case Study in Jessore District of Bangladesh

This study aims at analyzing tomato value chain in Jessore district in Southeast region of Bangladesh. The specific objectives of the study were identifying the main chain actors and map the tomato value chain, assessing their linkages and roles, calculating marketing margins of each actor, identifying the major constraints and opportunities in the value chain. Both primary and secondary data sources were used. Data were obtained from a convenience sample of participants from Jessore district and the total sample size was 150 including producers and different value chain actors. Data analysis was done using SPSS statistical software. The descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were employed in the analysis of collected data. Objective (i) was realized using value chain mapping. This approach was used to identify actors, their linkages, and roles. The major actors in the study are input suppliers, tomato producers, wholesalers, roadside traders, brokers, retailers, consumers, and supportive actors while objective (iii) was achieved using strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis. Market margin analysis was carried out to estimate value captured by each actor. The result revealed that the major actors in the value chain are input suppliers, tomato producers, collectors, small traders, big traders, processors and consumers. Producers market share shows that producers obtain the largest share when they sell out directly to roadside traders which is about 85.32 %. The major problems confronting the tomato value chain were found to be low prices, high perishable nature, lack of access to credit, poor quality of tomatoes, inadequate storage and processing facilities, inadequate transportation facilities, dispersed nature of supply, high interest rate and lack of adequate information. While farmers ranked low price as their most worrying constraint, poor transportation facilities of Jessore produced tomatoes was ranked as the most pressing constraint of value chain actors.