The Future of Smallholder Farming in Eastern Africa - Uganda ...

Post-Harvest Grain Management and Food Security in Ethiopia
1. Background and Justification for the Study
1.1. The Significance of Foodgrains in Consumption and Production
Foodgrains (cereals, pulses, and oil crops) constitute the major source of food in Ethiopia;
they account for 82 percent of total calorie intake 18 and 70 percent of food expenditure (CSA
1988; Abebe 2000:260). Cereals alone provide about 70 percent of the average Ethiopian’s
calorie intake (Howard et al. 1995). Studies conducted in some parts of the country (Shiferaw
1986; Tesfaye 1989) have reported even higher figures 19 indicating that foodgrains account
for more than 95 percent of total food requirements.
This heavy dependence on foodgrains is well reflected in the cropping patterns. The country’s
agricultural production is dominated by grain. Out of 16.5 million hectares of land under
cultivation, 14.6 million (88.5 percent) are under annual crops (Tesfaye et al. 2001).
Grain production in Ethiopia is virtually a smallholder farmer’s activity, and yield levels are
among the lowest in the world. Studies indicate that only about a quarter of the total
foodgrains produced by farmers is marketed (Gabre-Madhin 2001; Abebe 2000; Gebre-
Meskel, Jayne, and Shaffer 1998); the bulk of production is retained for on-farm
consumption 20 .
Table 5. Average Area, Output, and Yield Levels of Cereals (1974-99)
Area Output
Yield (Quintals/ha)
Crop
(000 ha) (000 qts) Ethiopia World Best World Average
Wheat 665.57 7,787.27 11.71 57 (Holland) 28
Barley 838.97 9,164.25 11.06
Teff 1,535.83 13,097.21 8.55
Maize 1,033.11 16,063.96 15.48 74 (New Zealand) 30
Sorghum 837.86 10,134.58 11.92 48 (Spain) 13
Cereals (Total) 5,115.00 57,869.41 11.28
Source: Ethiopian Economic Association 2002. (for Ethiopia)
Concern over marketed foodgrain surplus has always been at the center of policy formulation
and implementation. In the past, the government tried different methods to control the
marketing of foodgrains. For example, the state-owned Agricultural Marketing Corporation
(AMC), which was established in 1976, fixed grain prices at below market levels and set a
compulsory procurement quota. Another effort involved the use of state farms to capture
production ,since they found it difficult to control marketed surplus of food through markets
18 The most important grains in terms of consumption are teff, wheat, and maize, which together constitute
roughly two-thirds of caloric intake in Ethiopia (Alemayehu 1993).
19 A high concentration of cereals (over 75 percent) in food intake is a symptom of an unbalanced diet. Diets
high in cereals and tubers are low in micronutrients. (FAO 1998)
20 Of the total grain production, some 72 percent is retained for on-farm uses (Gebre-Meskel, Jayne, and
Shaffer 1998).