Abstract:
Tanzania is not drought prone, but food insecurity in the country
is both transitory and chronic in nature. Agriculture which is
the backbone of the country’s economy is the main sector that
can solve the problem of food insecurity especially through the
production of maize (Zea mays). In Tanzania, maize is a staple
food crop, its shortage is equated to food shortage. Ludewa
district which is the study area is part of the Southern Highlands
of Tanzania which is a famous zone for maize production.
Enhancing maize production in this zone has great potential to
minimise the problem of food insecurity in Ludewa district and
other areas with food deficit like coastal and Dar es Salaam
regions. Apart from technical issues, this requires well
functioning markets which lower transaction costs hence
relatively high producer price that stimulates maize production
and low consumer price that will facilitate the accessibility of
food by consumers. Many studies have been undertaken to
analyse the factors for food insecurity but with limited attention
to producer’s price (farm-gate price) as one of the factors. In
this study, the logistic regression model was estimated to quantify
the influence of farm-gate price on farm households’ food
security. The result indicated that the lower the producer price
the higher the likelihood of food insecurity. Other factors that
exhibited significant influence on farm households’ food security
are; size of family, land planted with crops and quantity of maize
produced.
