A Research On Evaluating And Comparing The Performance Of Agricultural Products Marketing Channels

Agricultural marketing channel is the ways and channels which the agricultural products transferred from producers to consumers, and channels is the connection of production and consumption, and an important link in the entire social reproduction process. It related to the food needs of 1.3 billion people, as well as to ensure the improvement of livelihood of the majority peasants, and has a very important status and crucial role in the agricultural sector and even the entire national economy.However, the traditional mode of agricultural marketing channels which established in the seller's market conditions hasn't gradually longer adapt to the current new agricultural products marketing environment since entering the new century. There has been a series problems of agricultural marketing channels, such as agricultural marketing channel is operating in lower performance, and hindered agricultural products' circulation from producers to consumers, and its inhibiting the maximization of consumer welfare, and has seriously hampered the development of China's agricultural and marketing of agricultural products.So, how to construct smooth and efficient marketing channels to achieve the rapid circulation of agricultural products and related services from fanners to consumers, and sovle these problems which agricultural products are difficult to sell out or saled sluggishly; how to set up a new interests distribution pattern of channel member, and resolve these conflicts and antinomies which farmers' income maximization, middlemen profit maximization and the consumers welfare maximization; how to improve channel efficiency and reduce the marketing cost in order to reduce food consumption cost in the whole community, and raise consumer welfare level, etc. These practical problems about marketing channels need to be studied and solved. These problems can be summed up, namely, is the performance of agricultural products marketing channels: which factors affected the performance of agricultural marketing channels? How to assess the performance level of channel members or channel chain? How to choose and establish a high-performance of the agricultural marketing channels? This dissertation attempts to carry on a exploratory study about channel performance of agricultural products in order to answering and resolving these practical and theoretical issues.The main research content includes:1) Analysis the relationship between agricultural marketing channel performance and its related factors. We put forward four factors model of channels (channel structure, channel functions, channel synergies, and channel performance), and use the scale data from members of the agricultural marketing channels, using Structural Equation Model (SEM) analysis method, explorer the relationship between channel performance and other three factors, At the same time, we also use the econometrics method to analysis the effect that economic development, environmental, consumption and other external factors to the channel performance.The empirical analysis shows that: a) Channel structure of agricultural marketing is the critical impact on the channel performance, channel structure have indirect positive effects to channel performance through channel synergies and channel function. It is a very important conclusion in the research and reveals the mechanism between channel structure and channel performance. It shows that the channel synergies and channel function is the key links and taches. If ignore either channel synergies or channel functions, we fail to achieve its aim of enhancing the channel performance. Therefore, only have the best structure and the lack of the support and cooperation of channels members and the reasonable arrangement about channel functions, the performance goals of agricultural products marketing channels organization will be difficult to achieve. This also provides an explanation in theory for channel integration.b) Channel synergies can improve channel performance, and is helpful to form a competitive channels chain. Based on the thoughts about channel synergies, it is very important to alliance or integration in a channel system.c) Channel perform process is essentially spent marketing costs and create services output of channels, and is also a unity-added and value-added process. The fulfillment and partition of Channel functions effect channel performanced) Economic development, government policy and consumption are an important factor effecting channel performance in the external variables. The channel link will be shortened with the improvement of economic development level, and it is helpful to raise channel performance and the level of service output. The government's macro-management to agricultural marketing channel system is helpful to increase the overall performance of channel. The rising consumption level is helpful to the updating of circulation industry, and promotes the improvement of channel performance.2) Evaluation the performance level of agricultural marketing channel. We build up the indexes of channel performance of agricultural marketing, collected a lot of data about the sales status, distribution efficiency of organization of agricultural products by market research, and use Gray-target Decision Model to calculation the performance level of the current pattern of agricultural products marketing channel in the cities, and compare agricultural wholesale markets which is the main distribution channel of agricultural products.The analysis conclusion showed that: a) Terminal market and Fresh supermarket will continue to coexist for a certain period. Although the Terminal market have some problems, but it is still an efficient channels form of agricultural marketing, will not be replaced by fresh supermarket in the short term, but its operation will be greater impact and influence by the latter, b) Wholesale market of agricultural products need to be extended value chain, and take the road of vertical integration. It is helpful to find new profits, the development field, and it also can be effective to reduce channel link, and reduce distribution cost through internal affiliated transactions, and improve the distribution efficiency of agricultural products.3) Analysis the performance status of Agricultural marketing channel. We analyzed the cost and benefit of channel members in the marketing process through market survey data, including producer, intermediary organizations.The analysis report showed: retailers, wholesalers and other middlemen are in a dominant position in the entire channel value chain and hold most of the channels interests. The conclusion is consistent with this view on the channel diagonal dominance transfer theory.In a conclusion, this study has a positive significance in the following aspect: promoting of agricultural products marketing theory development, improving the system of China's agricultural marketing channels, and pushing forward the upgrading of agricultural marketing channels. namely, it is helpful to enrich and expand the theoretical research of agricultural marketing channels by exploring the mechanisms and influencing factors of the performance of agricultural marketing channel; it is helpful to resolve the inefficient problems of channels and achieve fast and efficient distribution of agricultural products through evaluation and analysis the performance of agricultural marketing channels; it is a practical significance that discuss the countermeasures to improve the performance of agricultural marketing channels and advance the innovation and evolvement of marketing channel system of agricultural products, and the construction of high-performance agricultural marketing channels.