A profitability analysis of fertilizer use for maize production in Nigeria

Inorganic fertilizer use across sub Saharan Africa is generally considered to be low. Yet, the notion that fertilizer use is too low is predicated on the assumption that it is profitable to use rates higher than currently observed if indeed we consider rural farmers to be rationale expected profit maximizes. As a result of this assumption, the literature generally looks to other constraints to its adoption (financial market imperfections (credit/insurance/savings), knowledge, or lack of demand and thus the realization of economies of scale on the supply side (agro-dealer network), or lack of access to markets to sell the produce, but these all link again to profitability issues. Consequently this brief summarizes a study that focuses on the profitability of fertilizer use as a likely explanatory factor for observed fertilizer use rates in Nigeria.