Introduction:

this article presents a proposal on how to improve the marketing system of peasant products, derived from research results.

Objective:

to establish an approximation to an associative marketing system for agricultural producers of small and medium producers.

Materials and methods:

based on the research carried out with producers from eastern Antioquia (Acevedo y Palacio, 2012) and the experience with peasant farmers from other municipalities in the department of Antioquia, a proposal was made to approach an associative marketing system for products of small and medium producers.

Results:

after all the field work and the interaction with the producers, it can be evidenced that there are bad marketing practices, since multiple factors such as intermediaries and transport intervene in the formation of the prices of the products.

Conclusions:

the difficulties that small and medium agricultural producers face and that merit this type of proposal, start from the way they market their products, avoiding costly displacements and freights, and having to face wholesalers, which some consider disrespectful, dominant and abusers. This circumstance leads them to sell to rural collectors, or to intermediaries in the squares of the towns, where they negotiate at very low prices. This sales system, centered in municipal squares and large supply centers, where the farmer has a great competitive disadvantage, is the dominant one in Colombia and many other countries. Acevedo and Palacio (2013), conclude in their research, that to overcome the weaknesses of the farmers in the purchase of inputs and marketing of their products, it is necessary to develop associative companies specialized in marketing of agricultural products, which represent all the product lines , and that allow the participation of all producers and their associations, as partners. The proposed marketing system involves the local and regional and could help large groups of farmers to achieve purchase guarantees and fair prices for their products, through organizations with high volume of operations, which allows them to be competitive and financially sustainable in the time.

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