Which of the following factors is not a reason for farmers' unstable incomes?

Analyze the question: We need the option that is NOT a cause of unstable farmers' incomes. Three of the options should be real causes of income instability, and one should not.

Concept: Farmers' incomes fluctuate mainly because of:

• Weather and natural factors: Agriculture depends on rainfall, sunshine, pests and disease. Output swings from year to year, and so does income.
• Inelastic demand and price swings: Agricultural products have price-inelastic demand, so a change in supply causes a large change in price.
• Perishability and poor storage: Without good storage, produce rots or must be sold cheaply at harvest, when prices are low.
• World market conditions: For export crops such as cocoa, a recession abroad reduces demand and prices, which lowers income.

Evaluate each option:

• A. Dependence on too many crops: Growing many crops is diversification. It spreads risk, because if one crop fails or its price drops, the others cushion the loss. This stabilizes income, so it is not a cause of instability. (The real cause of instability would be dependence on one or too few crops, i.e. monoculture.)
• B. Poor storage facilities: Produce spoils and farmers are forced to sell at harvest-time low prices, so income becomes unstable. This is a cause.
• C. Adverse weather conditions: Droughts and floods cause output to vary, so this is a cause.
• D. Recession in the world economy: Demand for export crops falls and prices drop, so this is a cause.

Answer: The factor that is not a reason for unstable incomes is A, dependence on too many crops.

Exam tip: Watch the wording in "not/except" questions. "Too many crops" means diversification, which reduces risk. The risky one is "too few crops" or "one crop". Swapping that single word is a common JAMB trap.