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Although maize is economically and socially significant in the Hoko district, its production and marketing challenges as well as its economic benefit to society have not yet been studied. As a result, this study examined the maize value chain in the Hoko district of Sidama regional state, Ethiopia. This study used a multi-stage sampling strategy and a cross-sectional research design. To analyze the data value chain approach and econometric analysis were used. To move 4275.755Qt of maize, twelve marketing channels were found. Producers have the largest profit share when selling directly to consumers and the lowest profit share in a channel where many intermediaries are involved. The results of the multiple linear regression model showed that, out of the 13 explanatory variables that were assumed to determine the household's market supply of maize, seven of them—sex of the household head, age, family size, frequency of extension contact, amount of maize produced, net annual income, and use of credit services were found to have a significant impact on the market supply of maize. The main constraints for maize producers were a limited supply of improved maize varieties, poor technology, seasonality, and weather-related issues, a lack of irrigation, pests, and diseases, poor credit services, a lack of market information, and a lack of knowledge and skill. Lack of suitable storage, poor post-harvest management, the existence of unlicensed dealers, inadequate market knowledge, price volatility, and low maize quality were the main constraints to maize marketing. Therefore, it is advised to implement policy initiatives aimed at enhancing farmers' access to maize technologies, creating and improving market information, cooperative development, innovations, enhancing extension systems, and credit to hasten the development of the maize value chain in the study area.

Background It is believed that in Ethiopia barley has been cultivated before 3000BC. Among the cereals, it is ranked in fifth place and the most important crop next to teff, sorghum, and wheat in the country. Different works of literature highlight that engagement in contract farming is one of the innovations promoted to tackle technology constraints of the smallholder farmers, as a possible solution to raising productivity and linking smallholders in the emerging modern marketing chains. Associated with the rapid rate of urbanization in the country, there is a high demand for malt barley which is resulting high expansion of beer factories. Consequently, in the study area, many farmers got into a contract agreement with Assela malt barley factories. Recent studies conducted on malt barley in Ethiopia gave much emphasis to the value chain aspect of malt barley. Therefore, the main motive behind this study was to fill the empirical literature gap in the field by giving much emphasis on the impact assessment of malt barley contract arrangement on income and food items dietary diversity of the respondent households. Methodology To attain the study objectives, both primary and secondary data were collected and used. Randomly selected 312 households comprising 127 households engaged in malt barley contract farming arrangements and 185 non-contract households were the source of primary data for this study. Secondary data were collected from a review of different works of literature. Both descriptive and econometric models were used to analyze the primary data using Stata software version 14. The propensity score matching model was applied to examine the impact of malt barley contract farming engagement on the income and dietary diversity of the respondents. Result It was found that family size, credit use, livestock holding, malt barley production experience, frequency of extension contact, and land allotted for malt barley production positively determine the probability of participation in malt barley contract farming arrangement. Contrary to this, distance to the malt barley collection centers negatively determine the probability of participation in malt barley contract farming. The ATT estimation of the PSM indicated that participation in malt barley contract farming has a positive impact on the income and dietary diversity of the respondent households. Conclusion Participation in contract farming had a positive and significant impact on the annual income and dietary diversity of the smallholder households. The sensitivity analysis result showed that the impact results estimated by this study are insensitive to unobserved selection bias and the result obtained shows the true impact of contract farming on the income of the households. Therefore, concerned bodies working on malt barley production aspects as a development intervention should work to encourage non-contract farmers to engage in this activity.