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Abstract
Pepper (Capsicum annuum Mill.) is an important crop produced in Nigeria. This study examined efficiency of pepper production under tropical conditions during the 2010 production season. Data were collected from 120 pepper producers and analyzed using descriptive statistics and stochastic production function frontier. About 85% of producers were male, average 43 years old, with 11.6 years of pepper farming experience. About 84% of respondents were married, and 48% had a household size on average of 8 persons. About 77% of respondents cultivated an average of 1.23 ha. The stochastic frontier indicated that factors affecting pepper production include pesticide (α0.05), fertilizer (α0.05), and labor (α0.10). Socioeconomic factors that may improve pepper production are farming experience (α0.05), household size (α0.01), and access to credit (α0.01). Mean technical efficiency of pepper production was 0.64. Pepper production at the current production frontier is only fairly efficient. Improved high-yielding pepper cultivars and training in their use could improve pepper production efficiency.