Factors influencing market outlet choice among tomato farmers in selected districts of Bangladesh

Efficient agricultural marketing systems play a significant role in translating vegetable production growth into enhanced smallholder welfare and food system performance in Bangladesh. Despite the economic importance of tomato cultivation, empirical evidence on how smallholder farmers select among alternative marketing outlets and how these choices are jointly determined remains limited. Improving smallholder farmers' participation in agricultural markets remains a major challenge affecting the growth, profitability, and commercialization of tomato production in Bangladesh. This study investigates the factors associated with marketing outlet choice among smallholder tomato farmers in three leading tomato-producing districts of Bangladesh, addressing gaps in the joint modelling of outlet choices. Data were collected from 180 smallholder tomato farmers using a multi-stage random sampling procedure combining purposive and simple random sampling. Employing cross-sectional survey data from farmers and a Multivariate Probit (MVP) model, the analysis explicitly accounts for the potential interrelations among three principal marketing outlets: collectors operating at the farm gate or local collection centres, wholesalers in local village markets (LVM), and wholesalers in nearby town markets (NTM). The findings indicate that farmers’ marketing outlet choices are interdependent and jointly determined rather than independent decisions. Access to market information, road infrastructure quality, transportation constraints, limitations of storage facilities, farming experience, and income diversification are significantly associated with outlet selection. Improved road infrastructure, agricultural extension visits and access to market information are associated with a higher probability of participation in wholesale markets located in nearby towns, whereas transportation barriers are associated with a greater reliance on collectors. Educational attainment is negatively associated with LVM participation, while experience in tomato cultivation is positively associated with collector use. Off-farm trading income is associated with participation in higher remunerative nearby town markets, whereas engagement in other income-generating activities is associated with participation in geographically proximate marketing outlets. The results highlight the importance of transaction costs, infrastructure, agricultural extension visits, and access to information in shaping market participation patterns. Overall, the findings highlight the importance of infrastructure, transaction costs, extension services, and market information in shaping market outlet choice patterns beyond demographic characteristics alone. This study provides policy-relevant insights for designing integrated interventions to strengthen rural infrastructure, reduce transaction costs, and enhance market information systems and agricultural extension services.