Study on Marketing Behavior of ‘Uzhavar Sandhai ’ Vegetable Farmers During Covid 19 in Coimbatore District of Tamil Nadu

Abstract

During the Covid 19 disaster and lockdown imposed by the Government, farmers found it difficult to harvest, transport, and market their farm produce and sell at competitive prices. Vegetables being highly perishable required immediate marketing. ‘Uzhavar ‘Sandhai’ (Farmer’s market) was one of the main channels for selling fresh vegetables directly to consumers. The present study was conducted to understand the marketing behaviour of vegetable farmers and identify the major constraints faced in marketing their farm produce during Covid 19 in two Uzhavar Sandhai in Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu. A sample of 50 sellers was selected based on simple random sampling method. The results revealed medium level of overall marketing behavior among vegetable farmers in ‘Uzhavar ‘Sandhai’ during Covid 19 pandemic situation. The lack of transportation facilities and non-availability of buyers visiting the Sandhai were the significant constraints faced by vegetable farmers. The study also found the need for grading-based fixed prices for the vegetables sold in ‘Uzhavar Sandhai’.