Factors Affecting Production and Marketing of Spices in Ethiopia: A Review

A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for the purpose of flavoring, and sometimes as a preservative by killing or preventing the growth of harmful bacteria (Masresha, 2010).Spices can be defined as "vegetable products used for flavoring, seasoning and imparting aroma in foods" (FAO, 2005).Ethiopia is a source country for many spice exports, with a long history of spices.The average land covered by spices is approximately 222,700 ha with production reaching 244,000 tons per year.More than 50 spices are produced in Ethiopia, and a total potential for low land spice farming is estimated to be 200,000 hectares (GIT, 2016).In Ethiopia, the production and use of spices is perhaps the most romantic story of any plant product, legendarily known to go back to the times of Queen of Sheba.Studies showed that, spice crops such as korarima cardamom, Ethiopian long pepper, black cumin, bishop's weed, coriander, thyme and fenugreek are also attached to Ethiopia either as a center of origin or diversity.Spices in Ethiopia are also many things and the role they played could be viewed proportionally to the level of their utilization.For centuries, they have been used as one of the major livelihoods and life-giving foods of both the rural and urban populations.Besides, since most of them are labor intensive, small in bulk and so cheap to transport, and of high value per unit, they present a special opportunity to hasten both rural and urban development (Habtewold et.al., 2017).With 18 major agro-ecological zones and various agro ecological subzones, Ethiopia has a suitable climate for growing more than 146 types of crops and has been producing a number of spices.Out of Abstract: Spices are produced in different agro-ecologies of Ethiopia and it is a source of income for producers and traders involved in production and marketing.They are very important cash crops used for food flavor and medication purpose.In spite of their importance, the sector is constrained by different factors.Being cognizant of the situation, this review paper was aimed at reviewing factors affecting production of spices, factors affecting marketing of spices and opportunities of spices production in Ethiopia.Reviewed empirical evidences showed that, traditional way of farming, absence of seeds and planting materials, high frequency of weeding, high input requirement, high input cost, lack of drying facility, taking long time to dry, shortage of access to credit and extension, different disease and pests, wild animal competition, poor quality of output, absence of proper post-harvest handling practices and others are factors affecting production of spices in Ethiopia.Low output price, poor market access and imperfect market information, capital constraints, limited processing of spices, adulteration, mismatch between demand and spices, transportation problems, unlicensed traders, theft, low government support, lack of value addition, price volatility, weak market research and promotion, poor market infrastructure, lack of effective linkage of stakeholders, lack of capacity building, low bargaining power of producers, limited ability of producers to enter in market due to limited time, skill, and resources are some of the factors that affect spices marketing in Ethiopia.Ethiopia is suitable area for spices production due to suitable climate condition and presence of various agro-ecologies, abundant land, cheap labor and favorable policy environment.Therefore, by reducing identified production and marketing constraints and exploiting available opportunities, the country can boost spices production and become competitor in the world spices market.