Market surveys
An example of a market survey is provided in Retail markets planning guide (Agricultural Services Bulletin No. 121, FAO Rome, 1995). The following types of information could be collected:
types and quantities of goods transacted daily, divided into agricultural produce, inputs and other merchandise;
details of market users (farmers, retailers, wholesalers, commission agents, processors, etc.);
the market management system, including fee collection and details of present and projected income and expenditure;
marketing channels for agricultural produce, inputs and non-food items;
methods of transporting produce, the types of vehicles used, frequency of travel and cost of transportation;
produce flowing into the market and going out to other destinations;
number of customers attending on market days;
physical facilities available in the market area (stores, shops, sales platforms, open and enclosed sales sheds, slaughter slabs, meat/fish retail sheds, etc.) and future needs of traders; and
present infrastructure, including market roads, pathways, surface water drains, tube wells, sanitation, drinking-water supply, drainage, sanitary latrines and facilities for disposal of solid waste.
Setting up surveys. Surveys can be time consuming. Sufficient financial resources and a trained and competent staff are needed. Where surveys are required it is necessary to decide the following.
Who is responsible for the survey design?
Who will carry out the survey?
How will it be paid for and what is the procedure for recruitment of the necessary staff?
Who will supervise the survey and be responsible for logistics, such as transport?
Who will be responsible for data handling?
Is a pilot survey needed before starting the main survey?
When will the survey be undertaken (for example, during peak agricultural production periods)?
Is special approval required from adjoining owners, traffic authorities or local communities?
Social assessment methods
The methodologies used in rapid rural appraisal (RRA) or participatory rural appraisal (PRA) are very similar. For market studies they have in common the following features:
semi-structured open-ended interviews, in groups or with individuals;
participatory mapping, by walking through a market area to understand the distribution of stalls and types of produce sold;
local histories of what has happened in recent years in the production areas or the market;
seasonal diagrams of what is grown and when, and peak harvesting times; and
group discussions to crosscheck information on marketing practices such as where farmers sell their produce, how often they visit markets and the problems experienced at markets.
Mapping
Mapping is an integral part of the planning process. The purpose of mapping is to provide:
a baseline assessment of present conditions;
a means to enhance communication with users and help in identifying marketing problems and in formulating proposals;
the basis for preparing a site master plan; and
a means for monitoring a projects impact.
Approaches to mapping
There are basically two approaches to mapping, both of which may need to be applied. These can be supplemented by field survey work and the choice of method will depend on the availability of resources and equipment.
Participatory mapping. This is a method of creating maps through a dialogue with key informants, such as traders and farmers. The maps, which can be drawn on a blackboard or even on the ground, clarify the relationship between the various factors that influence marketing and highlight what is important (or unimportant) to the users. The mapping is often combined with a systematic walk through the area with the key informants, which can be useful for understanding any changes that are taking place.
Formal mapping. These are working maps used to understand existing market patterns and to identify and plan new market sites. The mapping is undertaken to provide:
a base map of the area;
thematic maps, showing different characteristics such as market locations and catchment areas;
site maps of the market area as the basis for selecting the sites and for preparing detailed site development plans.
The process of producing base-line maps consists of the following:
1. Collection of copies of all maps in current circulation and of any geographic information system database (if available).
2. Identification of provincial, district and village boundaries, administrative centres and market locations.
3. Drawing or redrawing of a base map.
4. Reproduction of the base map on tracing sheets.
Often the base maps are out of date. Advice on updating should be sought from the local survey department.
Site maps. The most important mapping in the whole process is preparing the site map of the market site. If adequate mapping of the market area is not available a survey should be carried out to record all the existing features within the market. The survey should be at least 1:500 scale, picking up details of levels (spot heights on a 2 to 5 metre grid, inverts of drains, slabs, breaks in slope, etc.) and the market site should be related to a fixed point. For an existing market the site map should also include all the existing buildings and other infrastructure on the site.
The survey may need to be extended to record other important features outside the market area, such as main road links and drainage outfalls. All mapping should be plotted to conform to a standard sheet size.
This annex supplements the description of Stage 2 and outlines the methods by which survey data, combined with information on agricultural production and household consumption, can be used to estimate the potential throughput of a larger market. Where very simple market improvements are planned (for example, to upgrade existing retail market infrastructure), such steps can be omitted.
Step B.1
Reviewing crop and livestock
production
Where information on market supplies does not exist, estimates can be made by looking at the available data on crop and livestock production within the market catchment area, including:
planted area under production (in hectares); with multiple cropping this will exceed the cropped area;
average yields (in tonnes per hectare);
total quantity of crops produced (in tonnes); and
total number of livestock reared.
Often, local or district data collected on an annual basis can give an idea of crop production. Estimates of livestock can be more difficult, as the data that is normally collected is the number of animals (head) in the field or pen. One way of handling data on local production is shown in Form 1.
Form 1
Estimating local farm
production
Crop |
Area |
Yield |
Production |
Green vegetables |
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Roots and tubers |
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Fruits |
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Grains (unmilled) |
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Total local production |
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Livestock |
Number |
Live weight |
Dead weight |
Cattle |
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Goats and sheep |
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Poultry |
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Total meat/poultry |
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This approach only gives existing production levels. However, by looking at trends over a number of years it should be possible to identify some patterns of growth. These will be influenced by a number of factors, including the way farmers are intensifying production (increasing yields) of existing crops or diversifying into new crops (changing to higher-value crops). If no trend data is available, a simple assumption to make is that production is increasing in line with population growth.
Step B.2
Reviewing the role of market
channels
Step B.1 gives an approximate idea of total production, but this has to be adjusted to take account of what is marketed and what farm households consume. A commercial farmer produces exclusively for the market, whilst a subsistence farmer grows primarily for home consumption.
Subsistence farmers are likely to rely mainly on the local retail market for their sales. More advanced farmers may use a variety of outlets, including on-farm sales and assembly markets. Large-scale commercial growers are probably better able to control their own marketing, which could be done through a mixture of contract selling at the farm gate and direct deliveries to local assembly markets or to wholesale markets in urban areas. From discussions with local officials and farmers it should be possible to obtain an overall impression of what marketing channels are presently being used, and what proportion (%) of marketed production is going through each channel (see Form 2).
Form 2
Estimating use of market
outlets
Type of farmer |
Type of outlet |
Fresh vegetables |
Fresh fruit |
Live- stock |
Small-scale |
- on-farm sales |
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- local markets |
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- other outlets |
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Large-scale |
- on-farm sales |
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- local markets |
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- other outlets |
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Step B.3
Reviewing existing consumption
data
The next step in the process requires a review to be made of what people eat. Consumption data is normally expressed as an annual average consumption for individual food items on a per capita (per person) basis, for example, 100 kilograms of potatoes per capita.
This information is often available from nutrition surveys. Alternatively, data from a comprehensive household budget survey may be available. Information may not be specific to the market catchment area, but can provide a broad estimate of what is consumed by local households.
Form 3 shows how consumption figures, by age and gender, can be used to calculate an average. These are likely to be national figures, but more reliable figures specific to the area may be available and sometimes these figures may distinguish between urban and rural households. As far as possible, local rural figures should be used. Care should be taken to use actual figures or reliable estimates. For food security purposes figures of daily food requirements are often announced and used in calculations of food balances. Such figures should not be used when planning markets as there is often a big difference between requirements and actual consumption.
Form 3
Average annual food
consumption
Fresh produce |
Daily consumption per capita (grams) |
Annual consumption per capita (kg) |
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Male |
Female |
Child |
Average |
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Vegetables |
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Potatoes |
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Fruits |
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Meat |
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Eggs |
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Fish |
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Total |
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Step B.4
Determining on-farm use
Once it has been decided what consumption figures to use it is possible to calculate the amount farm families are likely to consume of their own produce. However, farms may not be able to produce all their requirements and may need to purchase some commodities from outside, usually from a local primary market. The procedure for calculating average food requirements is shown in Form 4.
Form 4
Annual farm household food
needs
Fresh produce |
Annual on-farm consumption |
Farm population in catchment area |
Total food needs |
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Kilograms per capita |
Tonnes per capita |
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a |
b |
c |
d |
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Vegetables |
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Potatoes |
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Fruits |
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Meat |
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Eggs |
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Fish |
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Total |
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This may not be the total use of produce on the farm. To determine the farm surplus, adjustments need to be made and this will require some rough estimates to be made as shown in Form 5.
Form 5
Total annual farm use
(tonnes)
Fresh produce |
Total food needs |
Other use of produce |
Total farm use |
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Fodder |
Seed |
Losses |
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a |
b |
c |
d |
e |
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Vegetables |
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Potatoes |
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Fruits |
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Meat |
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Eggs |
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Fish |
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Total |
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The last calculation is to determine whether there is actually a surplus from the farms. It compares the farm household needs with the production estimates derived in Step B.1, as shown in Form 6.
Form 6
Marketable annual surplus or deficit
(tonnes)
Fresh produce |
Total farm use |
Total production from Step B.1 |
Marketable surplus |
a |
b |
(a - b) |
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Vegetables |
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Potatoes |
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Fruits |
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Meat |
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Eggs |
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Fish |
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Total |
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Step B.5
Determining non-market sales
Before estimating what might be the market throughput, the role of other marketing channels (Step B.2) needs to be taken into account. As this is influenced by many factors only a rough estimate can be made, particularly of produce sold at farm level or delivered directly to urban wholesale and urban retail markets. An illustration of the calculation is shown in Form 7, using the percentages from Step B.2 to divide the surplus between different channels.
Form 7
Annual sales apart from rural markets
(tonnes)
Fresh produce |
On-farm/farm-gate sales |
Direct deliveries |
Other markets |
Total non-rural market |
a |
b |
c |
(a + b + c) |
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Vegetables |
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Potatoes |
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Fruits |
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Meat |
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Eggs |
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Fish |
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Total |
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Step B.6
Estimating market throughput
The last step is to estimate the throughput of the planned market. The basic calculation method, which is the same for both primary and assembly markets, is shown in Form 8.
Form 8
Annual market throughput
(tonnes)
Fresh Produce |
Marketable surplus |
Total non-rural market |
Planned or existing market |
Supplies from outside area to meet deficit |
Total market through-put |
a |
b |
c |
d |
e |
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Vegetables |
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Potatoes |
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Fruits |
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Meat |
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Eggs |
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Fish |
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Total |
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If the market also trades in live animals then an allowance for this must be made. For an existing market the best guide would be what is presently traded, but for a new market an assumption will have to be made as to what proportion of the local livestock or poultry production might be sold in the market.
Roads and parking
· Single-lane road width: 3.5m.
· One-way road width: 7m.
· Two-way road width: 12m.
· Size of parking space for 1 car: 4.8 × 2.4m.
· Visitors car parking: 2 to 5 spaces per 100m2 of sales area.
· Visitors car parking: preferred maximum distance from market: 100m (absolute maximum distance at peak periods: 200 m).
· Size of parking spaces for pickups: 8 × 3.6m.
· Size of parking areas for trucks: 11 × 3.6m.
· Parking for traders and delivery vehicles: 1 to 2 spaces per 4 stalls.
· Sidewalk widths: 2.5m minimum (5.2 m if roadside stalls to be accommodated).
· Lamp standards: spaced at intervals of 15 to 25m.
Public health
· Water supply standpipes or tube-wells at a maximum distance of 50m from users (25m preferred).
· Meat and fish stalls with immediate access to water supply (adjacent).
· Toilets (pit latrines and urinals) at a maximum distance of 100m from users (50m preferred).Space for latrines at 2m2 per 1 000 peak period market users.
· Toilet provision for staff: 2 m2 per 25 market employees (male and female separate).Minimum of 2m 2.
· Dustbins or garbage pits at a maximum distance of 50m from users (25m preferred).
Buildings and stalls
· Main thoroughfare of a market: a 6-metre width aisle between stalls to allow for seating and other uses.
· Aisles inside building: minimum of 3.5m to allow a group of three people walking together to pass one person standing by a stall, or two people walking to pass two other people.
· Maximum distance between cross aisles inside buildings: 12m.
· Minimum stall depth (trader standing behind):2m for standing and stacking of boxes, plus 1m for the counter.
· Minimum stall depth (trader standing in front): between 1.2 and 1.5m for the counter.
· Minimum stall depth (trader sitting on stall): 1.2m.
· Minimum stall height (trader sitting on stall): 0.4m.
· Minimum stall height (trader standing in front): 0.7m.
· Minimum stall width: 1.8m.
· Small lock-up stalls: between 2 × 2m and 3 × 4m, with sales space or table taking up from 30 to 50 percent of the area.
· Sales or table area per trader: between 0.8 and 1.2m2, excluding standing space;
· Ceiling height for market building: from 3.5 to 6m.
· Outdoor seating/low walls: 400 mm high and between 300 and 500 mm deep.
· Central market space for trading in the open: maximum dimension between 20 and 25m.
· Width of minor pedestrian routes: not to exceed the height of the surrounding buildings.
Animal handling in the market
· Cattle need comfortable climatic conditions, requiring between 2.5 and 3m2 of shade per head.
· Adequate space should be provided between stalls: a minimum of 2m is desirable.
· Bull pens should have a resting area of between 12 and 15m2.
· Pig housing should be at a density of 0.6m2 per pig (porkers).
· Poultry (chickens and ducks) housing should be at a density of 1 m2 per 6 to 8 birds.
· Slurry handling needs particular attention because of risks to animal and human health.
· Clean water supplies: allow between 60 and 70 centimetres of trough length per cow, with one trough for each herd of 50 animals. Typical water consumption is as follows:
upgraded beef cattle - 50 litres per day
local cattle - 20 litres per day
sheep - 5 litres per day
goats - 3 litres per day