Market Dynamics of Groundnut in Karnataka, India: A Study on Price and Arrival Instability

The nature and supply of agricultural products generally results in instability of prices and income within agricultural sector as well as in other sectors of the economy. Groundnut is a major oilseed crop contributing around 25.14 per cent of the total oilseeds production in the country during 2021-22. The present study aimed to analyze the growth and instability of groundnut arrivals and prices in Karnataka using monthly price and arrivals data of groundnut (2002- 2022). The secondary data were collected from published reports of APMC’s, Krishimaratavahini etc. For the study top ten groundnut markets such as Yadgir, Laxmeshwar, Raichur, Ballari, Challakere, Hubbali, Gadag, Mundargi, Chitradurga and Kottur were selected based on groundnut arrivals. The results of the study depicted that majority of the markets had shown a higher growth rate in market prices in the months of August, September and March which coincided with the offseason of groundnut and standing crop period. Groundnut arrivals were higher during the period of September to April and reduced during the period of May to August month in all the markets. This may be due to fluctuations in groundnut production and also changing the cropping pattern to other profitable crops. The study shows that there existed different levels of variability in groundnut market arrivals and this variability can be attributed to a range of factors including seasonal agricultural practices, market demand, weather conditions, transportation and local economic factors. The pattern of variation in groundnut market prices in all the markets showed a moderate degree of variation and was more stable across the months, which indicated a relatively consistent pattern of prices. The lowest variation in market arrivals from November to December might be due to the sowing period of groundnut in the study area. It is suggested to establish sufficient storage facilities. It may help farmers to store their part of the produce during harvest season and to sell their produce during the subsequent months for better price realization by reducing the glut in the market and to achieve stable market prices.