Training need assessment of farm women on value addition of horticulture crops in Karnataka

Introduction

India is the second largest producer of vegetables in the world next only to China and accounts for about 15% of the world production of vegetables. India produced 191.77 million metric tonnes of vegetables and 99.07 million metric tonnes of fruits (2019-20, according to the National Horticulture Database (Second Advance Estimates)) issued by the National Horticulture Board. According to FAO (2021) [2] , India is the top producer of ginger and okra among vegetables and ranks second in the production of potatoes, onions, tomatoes, brinjal, cabbage, and cauliflower. Only 2 to 3% of the fruits and vegetables in India are processed and between 30 to 40 per cent of them are wasted owing to inadequate post-harvest losses, subpar processing and poor packing. In order to avoid post-harvest losses, farm women and young people should receive training on value addition (Yadav et al., 2023) [4] . Once farm produce is brought home, the responsibility rests with women folk. Women play an active role in various production and postproduction activities of horticultural crops. The number of women engaged in agriculture and allied sectors has increased continuously in the past two -three decades due to various factors such as migration of men to urban areas, increase in the demand of labour force in construction and other sectors. It is necessary to assess the training needs of farm women who are involved in horticultural crop production before designing the interventional programmes for capacity building on value addition to prevent the post harvest losses during glut period. Therefore the research was conducted to assess the training needs of farm women involved in crop production in Kolar district of Karnataka State.

Methodology

Training need of respondents was operationally defined as the difference between what is desired performance and what do they possess before the training. The variable was quantified using the responses from the respondents. A total sample of 300 farm women involved in crop production were selected for the study.

To measure the extent of need for capacity building of farm women five dimensions of capacity building were included. They were a) need for technical aspects b) need for marketing aspects c) need for access to social information d) need for physical facilities availability e) need for financial management. The dimensions were measured on a three-point rating scale.

Scores were assigned as 1, 2 and 3 for less required, moderately required and most required respectively.

Results and Discussion

Technical aspects

The data represented in the table 1 showed that almost all the content related to technical aspects of value addition were mostly required by the respondents which clearly states that mean score varied from 2.76 to 2.28 based on which rank were assigned. Value added products of tomato got highest mean score of 2.76 followed by increasing the shelf life tomatoes, handling of modern equipments for harvesting, were ranked 1 to 9 respectively. 1 that training on value added products of tomato got I rank followed by increasing the shelf life of horticulture produce and handling of modern equipments for harvesting got II and III rank respectively. This might be due to the reason that respondents had less exposure to trainings on technical aspects of value addition. Women expressed that their need of training to reduce the post harvest losses of tomato by extending it's shelf life through value addition. The results are in agreement with Netravathi (2008) [6] .

Marketing aspects

The data represented in the table 2 shows that almost all the content related to marketing aspects of value addition were mostly required by the respondents which states that mean score ranged from 2.55 to 2.28 based on which rank were assigned. Market location and selling beyond farm gate with highest mean score 2.55, Credit sources and procurement procedures, Production timing, were ranked 1 to 5, respectively. With respect to marketing related training needs the respondents had high aspiration for marketing of value added products beyond farm gate and market location got I rank followed by credit sources and procurement procedures got II rank and Production timing of tomatoes got III rank. This might be due to overcome the problem of commission agents who received commission of 8 -10 per cent from buyers and sellers. Direct selling based on the demand was their basic training need on marketing. The results are similar to Nethravathi (2008) [6] .

Social information

The data represented in the table 3 shows that almost all the content related to social information aspects of value addition were mostly required by the respondents with mean score ranging from 2.47 to 2.33 based on which rank were assigned.

Risk management with highest mean score 2.47, specialised commodities training need, disaster management training need were ranked 1 to 5, respectively. [5] .

Physical facilities

The data from the table 4 shows that almost all the content related to physical facilities required for value addition training need were most required by the respondents mean score ranged from 2.48 to 2.32 based on which rank were assigned. Sales centres & wholesale & retailer outlets with highest mean score of 2.48, processing building and processing materials/equipment were ranked 1 to 5, respectively. [5] .

Financial management

The data from the table 5 shows that almost all the content related to financial management skill required for value addition training need were moderately required by the respondents mean score ranged from 2.82 to 2.07 based on which rank were assigned. Procurement of capital with highest mean score of 2.82, processing plant establishment, Benefit cost ratio calculation were ranked 1 to 5, respectively. [5] .

Conclusion

Training Need Assessment conducted among farm women reveals significant gaps in technical knowledge; modern value addition processing practices and market linkages remains limited. By addressing these training needs, farm women can be empowered, post harvest losses can be reduced and they can actively participate in decision making processes within the agricultural value chain. It is necessary to initiate womenfocused development programmes including involvement at a larger scale of women in ever increasing economic activities through better access to provide resources, inputs and services.

References

1. Anonymous. Horticultural Statistics at a Glance 2020. National Horticulture Board, Government of India; 2019.
2. FAO. The State of Food and Agriculture Report 20202021: Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA). Food and Agriculture Organization; 2021.
3. National Horticulture Board. Second Advance Estimates: Area and Production of Horticulture Crops. Horticulture Statistics Division, DAC & FW; 2021.
4. Yadav AK, Chandra S, Kumar T, Puja, Mudgal D, Kumar V. Status of vegetable processing and value addition. J Curr Res Food Sci. 2023;4(1):40-48.
5. Rahman MZ, Akhter S, Rahman A, Sharmin E. Capacity strengthening of rural women in carrying out post-harvest activities of vegetables and fruits towards security. Bangladesh Agricultural University; 2009.
6. Netravathi RV. Participation of farm women in post-harvest technologies of tomato in Kolar district. Bengaluru: University of Agricultural Sciences; 2008.