The economics of marketing the apricot crop and measuring marketing efficiency and the factors affecting it in Salah al-Din - Al-Alam District as a model for the 2022 production season

The high marketing margin and low marketing efficiency of apricots in Salah al-Din Governorate was the main goal of studying this crop, as well as estimating marketing costs and measuring marketing efficiency. A random sample was chosen in this research, consisting of (75) farmers in Al-Alam District, and the total number was (22) Questionnaire., and retail stores (46). The results showed that the retailer’s profits came in first place, reaching on average for the year (2022) about (296.900) dinars. The results also showed the total production costs per dunum and per ton for the apricot crop (389.000, 572.000) dinars respectively, and marketing efficiency was measured in the study area. The study showed poor performance of the marketing system for the apricot crop along the marketing channels, which is low when compared with the marketing systems of the rest of the countries of the world. The most important variables affecting marketing efficiency, as the results that could be obtained indicate that the linear formula The independent variables are the best according to economic and statistical standards, and it can be noted that (the costs of boxes and packing bags, the costs of packing and loading, the costs of transportation, and the distance of the marketing center) are linked to the amount of marketing efficiency in an inverse relationship. Either production costs and the variable of experience in agriculture are linked to a direct relationship with the amount of marketing efficiency, and this is consistent with the logic of economic theory. This study continued to open new wholesale outlets and expand wholesale offices, as the study showed that there is scarcity and scarcity in wholesale markets, and this in turn leads to many wholesalers monopolizing apricot fruits and selling them at prices that suit them.