Economic Returns and Smallholder Participation in Palm Oil Enterprise in Ado Local Government Area of Benue State, North-Central Nigeria

This study examined the economic returns and smallholder involvement in oil palm production enterprise in Ado Local Government Area of Benue state, Nigeria. Using Gross Margin analytical tool, results showed approximately 52% earned on average, ₦300,000 in annual revenue from the enterprise and about 37% operated on a farm size of 2-3 hectares. Also, the majority (91.7%) are palm oil farm owners, with 53.3% of them having between 101-150 stands of oil palm trees on their farm plot. The most widely used variety is the Tenera species (40%), which is believed to yield a higher quantity of crude palm oil than other varieties. 45.0% of the respondents revealed that labour expenditure ranges between ₦9,000-₦11,000, but the current cost of labour is above ₦11,000 and this happens mostly during the off-season. With a gross margin of 0.27 and a gross percentage of 0.107, profitability level has little significance in the study location. The study found that the cost of labour, insufficient finance and transportation are the major constraints to oil palm enterprise in the study location. Government incentives in the form of financial support or loans, credit facilities, and provision of good access roads would be just ideal solutions to facilitate the ease of operation of oil palm enterprise in the study location