Analysis of Value Added Cassava-Based Products and Profitability of High Quality Cassava Flour Bakery Products in Atebubu

Abstract

The aim of this study among others, was to analyse the value additions of three cassavabased products namely, High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF), gari and kokonte and to determine the profitability of HQCF bakery products in Atebubu. A value added analysis was used to determine the profitablity of the three cassava-based products. Three profitability measures were used to determine the profitability of HQCF bakery products. These were, operating profit, profit per unit product and return on investment. A bar chart of output levels was used to represent the trend in production of HQCF. Finally, the Kendal’s Coefficient of Concordance (W) was used to analyse the ranking of the constraints affecting the production of HQCF. Only HQCF had positive values for the two prices seasons that were considered, that is, the lean price season and high price season. Production of dough nut (“bo/rot"), and “sweet bad”, chips and meat pie with 50% HQCF composite flour yielded better financial returns than that of 100% wheat flour. Similar results were obtained from the production of bread and cake with 12% HQCF, and 100% HQCF respectively. However the use of 22% HQCF composite flour for bread yielded lower profit than the use of 100% wheat flour. The rankings of the identified constraints affecting HQCF production were subjected to the Coefficient of Concordance analysis. The results were that farmers did not collectively agree to the rankings of the identified constraints, which included, drying space, distance from the mill, frequent breakdown of the screw presser storage room, harvesting of cassava, distance from the farm, the absence of a micro finance scheme among others. HQCF bakery products competed favourably with wheat flour bakery products in all the profitability measures used. The promotion and use of HQCF bakery products must be pursued by serving HQCF bakery products at state functions and institutions like the secondary schools that receive subvention for feeding This will go a long way to popularize HQCF bakery products and reduce the foreign exchange used for the importation of wheat and wheat flour into the country.