Economics of cattle fattening focusing on profitability and marketing efficiency in selected areas of Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, more than 90% of people are Muslim. During Eid-ul-Azha, around 4.76 million cattle were slaughtered, which is almost half of the total of 10.04 million cattle slaughtered. Thus, the demand for beef cattle is particularly high during Eid, and as a result raising and fattening of cattle is a popular trade. The present study was conducted to investigate cattle fattening profitability and its marketing. The data was collected through structured interviews with 90 farmers, 15 beparies, and 15 meat sellers. Descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis were applied to determine the factors that affect profitability. According to the analysis, about 53% of farmers fattened their cattle during the whole year, while 47% of farmers fattened their cattle only before Eid-ul-Azha. The average benefit-cost ratio was estimated to be 1.25, implying that beef cattle fattening is profitable. The coefficients of the variables of treatment cost, feeding cost, and labour cost were significant at the 1% level, indicating a positive association with profitability. The average net return for beparies was BDT 1,964, and the average net return of meat sellers was BDT 1,944. The predominant marketing channels were identified as (i) farmer–bepari–meat-seller–consumer and (ii) farmer–bepari–consumer. However, the preferred channel was farmer-consumer because this channel enabled farmers to maximise profit. Marketing efficiency was also the highest in this channel. We recommend the provision of appropriate training, as well as easy access to market information, to establish sustainable cattle fattening enterprises in Bangladesh.