A study on the consumer preference towards value-added products produced by FPCs in Salem district, Tamil Nadu

In India, small and marginal farmers account for the 85 per cent of landholdings. Major problems faced by small farmers are low prices of the produce, interference of market intermediaries, marketing of produce and low access to technology and information. Setting up of farmer producer organizations (FPOs) provides opportunity for small farmers to participate in the market more effectively by aggregation of produce and helps them in getting better prices thereby enhancing agricultural production, productivity and profitability. The present study focuses on the consumer preference towards value-added products produced by FPOs in Salem district of Tamil Nadu. In total 120 consumers were selected based on purposive sampling technique for the study. The information from the respondents was collected using well-structured questionnaire through direct survey. The results of study indicated that unadulteration of the product and freshness were the main reasons for purchasing the value-added products produced by FPOs. Age, education and monthly income were the main factors that influenced the purchase of value-added products. Availabilityof the products at selective outlets and their high price `were the main problems faced by the consumers in purchasing the FPC value-added products..