A study of the problems and prospects of commercial small and medium scale cocoa and oil
palm production in Cross River State, Nigeria was carried out. Purposive and random sampling methods
were used in the selection of farm firms based on certain criteria for the study. The primary objective of
the study is to identify the problems and examine the prospects for the commercialization of small and
medium scale cocoa and oil palm production in the state. Survey results showed that most of the cocoa
and oil palm enterprises in the state are small to medium scale in size. Many inherited the former
government plantations which are sub-divided and given to private producers. With respect to processing,
there are a good number of palm oil extraction technologies of different sizes (obsolete and modern) as
well as palm kernel and palm kernel oil extraction mills in the state. In the case of cocoa, there is little
or no commercial processors in Cross River State. Marketing of dried cocoa beans are done by itinerant
country buyers who purchase them at the farm gate. Palm oil sales involve interstate trade from Cross
River State to Abuja, Lagos and various parts of the northern states of Nigeria. Survey results showed
that both cocoa and oil palm are profitable on the long run. The estimated net income per hectare were
about N45,600.00 and N52,500.00 for cocoa and oil palm respectively T identified problems with respect
to cocoa and oil palm production in the state include the use of low yielding varieties, limited land for
cocoa and oil palm cultivation, high cost of establishing nurseries and plantations, high cost of labour and
unavailability of skilled and unskilled labour. Other constraints were fluctuations in market prices, lack
of market information as well as spoilage and low quality products, among others. Opportunities exist for
mitigating these problems and promoting the development and commercialization of small and medium
scale cocoa and oil palm production in the state through public-private partnership, linkage of the
producers and processors to financial institutions and funding support to research institutes and other
service providers and institutions in the state.