Factors Determining Selective Adoption of the Cassava Grater and Screw Press in Southwest Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined factors determining selective adoption of the cassava grater and screw press in southwest Nigeria It also tested four null hypotheses using data obtained from 265 cassava processors drawn from three States (Ogun, Ondo and Oyo States) in southwest Nigeria. The data were subjected to both descriptive and inferential statistical analyses. The study found that both native and non-natives are involved in cassava processing, but processors across the selected States differ in their membership of groups. Almost all the cassava processors interviewed in Oyo State belonged to Gari Gbayi, the umbrella association for all cassava processors in the State. Of the 265 cassava processors, 57.74% adopted the cassava grater and 50.19% adopted the screw press. The adopters of cassava grater are older, with larger household sizes and stayed longer in school than the non-adopters.  They also have longer cassava processing experience and run larger cassava processing enterprises where more persons are also employed. A similar trend was obtained for the adopters and non-adopters of the cassava screw press. The findings corroborated the findings of some earlier studies in the region indicating that as cassava processing gets capital intensive, the socio-economic characteristics of processors tend to change. The main reason for the widespread adoption of the cassava grater and screw press were that they require less labour; are easy to practice, give good quality products, faster than manual grating and pressing and compatible with other stages in the cassava processing flow.