Journal of Environmental and Agricultural Sciences (JEAS). Arifalo et al., 2022. Volume 24(3&4): 11-22
Open Access – Research Article
Assessing the Effect of Aflatoxin on Maize Production in
Southwest Nigeria
S.F. Arifalo 1, ⃰, O.A. Thompson 1, ⃰, O.O. Ibiloro 1
1 Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, School of Agriculture and Agricultural Technology (SAAT), The Federal University of Technology, P.M.B. 704, Akure, Nigeria
Abstract: This study was designed to investigate the effect of aflatoxin on maize production in the study area. This was achieved by comparing the profitability and output of maize farmers not affected by aflatoxin and those affected in the southwest of Nigeria. A multistage sampling procedure was used to sample 400 respondents (200 maize farmers not affected by aflatoxin, and 200 maize farmers affected by aflatoxin). The result revealed that the net profit margin of the majority of maize farmers (36.33%) was not affected by aflatoxin. However, the profit margin of affected maize farmers was 26.66%. The study revealed that age, household size, fertilizer application, and awareness of combating aflatoxin had negative value but a significant relationship with combating aflatoxin using agro-chemical in the study area. The output of maize farmers affected by aflatoxin was 15.94% lower compared to the not affected maize farmers. The study opines that maize farmers ought to be sensitized and encouraged by policymakers and non-government organizations on the need to combat aflatoxin to increase their maize production.
Keywords: Maize farmers, Aflatoxin, Output, Endogenous Switching Regression Model, Southwest Nigeria, Toxicity
*Corresponding author: S.F. Arifalo, email: oathompson@futa.edu.ng
Cite this article as:
Arifalo, S.F., O.A. Thompson and O.O. Ibiloro. 2022. Assessing the effect of aflatoxin on maize production in
Southwest Nigeria. Journal of Environmental& Agricultural Sciences. 24(3&4):11-22.
[Abstract] [View Full-Text] [Citations] 
Copyright © Arifalo et al., 2022. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium provided the original author and source are appropriately cited and credited.
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Competing Interest Statement: All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
List of Abbreviations: ATE, Average Treatment Effect; ESR, Endogenous Switching Regression; IITA, International Institute for Tropical Agriculture; LGA, Local Government Area; NPMR, Net Profit Margin Ratio; SSA, Sub-Sahara Africa.
Author’s Contribution: Conceptualization, M.W.H. and K.Z.; Data curation, R.A. and A.U.M.; Formal analysis, M.W.H., K.Z. and M.M.J.; Funding acquisition, A.U.M., M.A. and B.E.B.; Investigation and Methodology, M.W.H., K.Z. and M.A.G.; Resources, Y.M. and C.M.A.; Validation, M.W.H. and K.Z.; Visualization, A.U.M.; Writing – original draft, M.W.H. and R.R.; Writing – review & editing, K.Z.
Acknowledgment: Funds for this research were provided by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research under the project “Strengthening vegetable value chains in Pakistan for greater community livelihood benefits” (HORT/2016/012).
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