Mechanised production system of oil palm produce in Nigeria: A preliminary study on the establishment of location-allocation models

This paper describes a basic study preceding the establishment of location-allocation models for a government-controlled agricultural industry. The need to develop an efficient and low cost production system for the Nigerian oil palm industry is established. The peculiar handling techniques of oil palm produce are outlined and the requirement of location-allocation models for this industry is discussed. Data were collected in Nigeria and the relevant cost and distance functions were developed for the models. It is necessary to emphasise that this paper contains the pre-requisites for the establishment of location-allocation models. The techniques for establishing these models have been discussed by the author elsewhere.