Abstract
This study was carried out to determine the economic viability of fertility management options in
cassava based cropping systems. Data were obtained from an on-station agronomic trial carried out
in 1995 and 1996 in the rainforest agro-ecological zone of south western Nigeria. Economic evaluation
was carried out using partial budget and Marginal Rate of Return (MRR) Analyses. The result showed
that higher net returns were obtained from inorganic fertilizer (N285,748 in 1995 and N259,569 in
1996) followed by inorganic fertilizer + Soybean + soybean residue (N274,826 in 1995 and N255,413 in
1996). However, the result of the MRR analysis indicated that farmers stand to gain better if they
change from no fertilizer control to either organic fertilizer (278%) or further to inorganic fertilizer with
a MRR of 1255% respectively. Similar result was obtained in 1996 with organic fertilizer (494%) and
inorganic fertilizer (1115%). However, considering the problem of scarcity often associated with
inorganic fertilizer, the choice of organic fertilizer is more likely to be accepted by the farmers.
Key words: Production economics, fertility management, cassava-based cropping systems.
