MST-Department of Agribusiness Management and Trade (AMT)

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A study of some socio-economic factors influencing roadside farming in Kikuyu and Limuru divisions Kiambu district
(2012-05-17) Mbwesa, Dorothy N.
This is a case study of roadside farming in Kikuyu and Limuru divisions, Kiambu district, Central Kenya. Roadside farming is an illegal activity involving the cultivation of food and fodder crops in addition to the grazing of animals on major road reserves belonging to the Government. The underlying objective of this study is to investigate some of the socio-economic factors motivating farmers to encroach on the road reserves and networks in order to establish roadside farm plots. Some basic concepts are reviewed and hypotheses and methods of data collection and problems encountered are elucidated. A background survey of the nature of the physical and human environments in which farmers base their decisions is provided, including the historical perspectives on land-population problems and transport and communication networks. The profile of roadside farmers and farm characteristics as well as the relationships between the attributes of roadside farming are presented. According to the Chi-square and regression analysis results, it is demonstrated that there are no significant relationships between: (a) Family size and roadside farm size; (b) Other legally-owned farms and roadside farm size; (c) Family income and roadside farm size; (d) Age of the roadside farmers and roadside farm size; (e) Distance between roadside farmers' residences and their farm plots; (f) Educational levels of the roadside farmers and the size of the plots owned. However, the factor analysis results yielded three factors including; financial gains attained from roadside farming, demographic factor and low family holdings which are used here to explain the existence of roadside farming in the study area. And, on the light of these findings, some policy implications and considerations are highlighted which could be implemented in an attempt to solve some of the roadside farmers problems. These are; land reform/redistribution, land resettlement, change of priorities in resource allocation towards rural areas, reduced population growths, provision of farm inputs and extension services and an improved physical planning of the local market centres in order to create better living conditions. In conclusion, it should be mentioned that roadside farming is a very controversial issue especially when considering the limited supply of the road reserves in relation to the ever increasing demand. Thus the livelihoods of the farmers can only be improved if the socio-economic problems are addressed to by policy makers and development planners.
An Analysis of Sesame Crop Value Chain: A Case Study of Kordofan Region, Sudan
(2013-10-17) Ahmed, Shawgi Ali
There is an urgent need to improve production and marketing conditions of small holder farmers in Kordofan region of Sudan in order to alleviate poverty and enhance food security. This study was conducted to determine the profitability of the sesame value chain as one of the viable options that can address the challenges of small holder fanners. This study characterized the sesame value chain from producers to processors in terms of material and information flows as well as theinter-relationships between the actors. In addition, constraints and opportunities in the sesame production and processingwere determined and marketing costs, value added and profit margin distribution among actors in the chain evaluated. A sample size of 150 respondents (farmers) were randomly selected using multistage sampling procedures. Thirty other actors (assemblers, brokers, wholesalers and processors)were traced and interviewed subjectively using purposive sampling procedures. The study used functional analysis, flowcharts and mapping of the current sesame value chain as well as strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis and financial analysis to draw results, conclusions and recommendations. The findings revealed that sesame production is constrained by lack of extension services, civil war and conflicts between farmers and livestock keepers over natural resources and scarcityof farming equipment.Oil processors are constrained by high cost and insufficiency of inputs and oil imports. Sesame producers' opportunities in the region include production of good local varieties and favorable growing conditions.Oil processors have the potential to increase oil production and compete with other oils by improving quality and exporting the livestock cake directly to the world market instead of selling it to brokers who then export the product. Traditional oil processors appeared to have higher profits(1 ,297.1 SDG/ton)compared to the industry sesame oil and this was attributed to the high cost of oil that was processed traditionally due to increasing demand for organic products and healthy oils.The resultsalso showed 'thattahania processorswere the winners of the chain in terms of profits with the highest profit share of 2705.5 SDG inany ton of sesame that ,wasprocessed. The commendations includea call for government to intervene by establishing extension services and routes demarcation to reduce the conflicts between farmers and livestock keepers. Policy makers, agricultural banks and existing small scale programs could form partnerships with relevant organizations to provide financial and infrastructural support to expand the scope and effectiveness of the current initiatives to overcome reported obstacles of access to credit.
Analysis of technical efficiency among smallholder rice Farmers in Eastern and Southern Provinces of Rwanda
(Kenyatta University, 2014) Ingabire, Chantal
Since 2004, rice is a priority crop for food security and poverty reduction in Rwanda. The crop was found capable of giving the highest yield in the marshlands compared to other crops and its consumption has been growing over the years, surpassing the domestic supply since the 1980s. In a bid to attain self-sufficiency, the country made remarkable efforts to develop the subsector. These were mainly directed towards the expansion of the area under rice, organisation of farmers' cooperatives and easy access to inputs. Despite these efforts, the country continues to rely on imports and the current productivity of.rice is still very low compared to the potential yield. The failure to reach the expected potential yield suggests a lack of technical efficiency in the production process. This study aimed, at assessing rice producers' technical efficiency as well as its determinants in Ntende and Cyili schemes respectively located in the Eastern and Southern provinces of Rwanda. It used a Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) with the Cobb-Douglas function on a random sample of 185 rice farmers. The results indicated that in Rwanda, the size of land, quantity of pesticides used and involvement of family labour in rice farming activities were the significant determinants of paddy production. The results also showed that the average yield in the sample was 4.81tons per hectare and the mean technical efficiency (TE) was 72% implying that rice farmers were operating below the production frontier. Results showed that if the average .farmer should produce at 100% of TE, hislher average yield should reach to 6.7 tons per hectare. Moreover, if the average farmer is compared to the one having the highest TE in the study sample, results indicates that the former would have reduced the inputs by 23% for the same current output. Regarding the determinants of TE, the age of rice farmers was found positively affecting technical inefficiency which indicated that as farmers become older, the inefficiency effects increase and TE decreases. On the other hand, trainings on rice farming practices and visits of extension agents were found to decrease inefficiency and significantly increase with TE. The implication of the study is that, there is an opportunity to increase paddy production through increased technical efficiency. To achieve this, the study recommends an increased number of extension officers' visits, training of farmers as well as a close follow-up to the older farmers.
The impact of the Girinka one cow per poor family program on household income in Gatsibo District, Rwanda
(2014) Mutarutwa, Nkusi Christian
Low agriculture productivity and arable land distribution is a major challenge in Rwanda. The obvious consequences is that a substantial number of rural families who subsist on agriculture have less than 1ha, and where there is no use of fertilizers and most of that land is not arable which will cause land degradation, poverty and low household income. In the vision 2020, Rwanda intends to move from a low level income country to a middle level economy by 2020. The Girinka program is one of the strategies towards these objectives. Its aim is to give to every poor family one cow that will help the poor families to increase their crop production by using manure, increase their income and their nutrition at the household level and country wide as well. It is against this background that the study evaluates the impact of one cow per poor family or Girinka program on household income in Gatsibo district in Rwanda. The study was an attempt to fill the gap of empirical understanding of the impact of Girinka program that was introduced in 2006 in Rwanda. The study objectives were to analyse the impact of the program on household income, on crop production at the household level and to evaluate the constraints facing the implementation of the program. The study has employed the propensity score matching (PSM) approach to analyze the impact of Girinka program on household income in Gatsibo district, using a cross sectional data of households participating and non-participant in the program, collected using a semi structured questionnaire in the region. The findings have shown that the program has a positive impact on household income and crop production at the household level. The logistic regression of the factors that influence the participation in Girinka program, four factors came out significant which are gender, household size, land size and crop input. The study also showed that according to the response of the participant; that corruption was not a main constrain during the implementation of the program, that follow up of local leaders was a constraint, that lack of information was not constrain, that training of beneficiaries was a constraint. The study also recommended the implementation of the program in other areas out of Rwanda as one of the policies basis for improving poor household livelihood, and this study recommended as well for further research of the impact of the program on milk production in the country.
Uptake of technology and competitiveness of legume production in small scale farming in South Kivu, Democratic republic of Congo
(Kenyatta University, 2014) Fidele, Barhebwa Balangaliza
Legumes are considered vital for achieving food and nutritional security for both poor producers and consumers. Despite their importance in human nutrition and role in sustainability of agriculture systems, grain legume yields are low and unstable across seasons and environments with declining per capita availability, there is an immediate need to address their production. As in other parts of SS A, Legumes constitute a major part of the population', diet in Democratic Republic of Congo. Although there is evidence that DR Congo has adequate land for Iegume i reduction, the yields and adoption of new varieties of legume still remains low. The country has recorded an average yield of 0.2 to 0.5 ton ha-: Oy";' the y ars compared to potential of i .0-2.0 ton ha-I .This has necessitated Vill ;0'18 stakeholders such as (,IAT to be at the forefront in the promotion q( legume productivity ill" Eastern DR Congo through the N2Africa project, focusing on common beans and SOWl beans. However. the level 0f knowledge and degree of uptake of the technology disseminated by N2AfTic
An analysis of indigenous chicken marketing efficiency and market participation among producers in Makueni County- Kenya
(2014) Ayieko, David Michael Ochieng
The indigenous chicken Gallus domesticus production is an important agricultural activity in many households in Kenya. Despite its importance, little research has been carried to enhance its productivity unlike other farm enterprises. The producers from Makueni are constrained in their participation in the indigenous chicken high value markets .Therefore, the objective of this study was to analyze the marketing efficiency of the indigenous chicken marketing channels in Makueni, determine the profitability of indigenous chicken to producers in Makueni and to determine the factors that have an effect on participation of producers from Makueni in the high value markets. A random sampling was used to sample 130 households from Makueni County and 66 traders from indigenous chicken markets in Makueni County. The Data used in this study was collected by the use of semi structured questionnaires, with additional information from key informant interviews and focus group discussion. This data was then analysed using Stata11 and Excel software. The SCP (structure-conduct-performance) approach coupled with the shepherd index, Gross margin analysis and Heckman two stage models were used to analyze the marketing efficiency, determine the profitability of indigenous chicken to producers and identify factors that have an effect on the high value markets participation of producers respectively. The results showed that the indigenous chicken markets had a concentration ratio (CR4) of 41% and a Herfindahl Hirschman index (HHI) of 1087.The 8 marketing channels identified had an average marketing efficiency of 2.29. The main constraints included: price fluctuations, inadequate access to credit and information, inconsistent supply, theft and lack of storage facilities. The producers got a gross margin of Ksh.8455 per year. Apart from the age of the household head, which had a negative effect on the producer decision to participate in indigenous chicken high value markets, processing, education level of household head, the farmer group membership status, the flock size and region all had a positive and significant effect decision to participate in indigenous chicken high value markets. On the other hand, the family size, the type of indigenous chicken, experience in selling indigenous chicken and the flock size all had a significant and positive effect on the number of indigenous chicken sold. However the age of the household head had a negative effect on the number of indigenous chicken sold. Therefore it is recommended that contract models should be used to improve the marketing efficiency. Secondly, the producers should use collective marketing to enhance their profits. Finally to increase the participation of the producers in the high value markets, the Government policy framework must focus on improving indigenous production and marketing in Makueni County.
Analysis of socio-economic factors affecting the Yields of smallholder coffee farmers In Kirinyaga County, Kenya.
(Kenyatta University, 2014) Maina, James Minai
Coffee is one of the key agricultural export commodities in the Kenyan economy. Prior to 1998, coffee was Kenya's top foreign exchange earner and currently ranks fourth after tea, tourism and horticultural sub-sectors. Despite coffee prices displaying a stable trend increase since 2002, yields in Kirinyaga County have remained low. This has negatively impacted on the farmers earnings from the coffee enterprise thus affecting their economic wellbeing due to the loss of income. This study aimed at determining the socio-economic factors influencing yields as well as assessing the influence of coffee prices on re-investment and yields within the small holder sector of Kirinyaga County. A total of 251 farmers were selected from the study area using the stratified random technique and a semi- structured questionnaire used to collect the data. The selection of farmers was done by first dividing the entire population into several sub-populations referred to as stratums. The three agroecological zones that are suitable for coffee growing in Kirinyaga County represented the stratums. Due to logistical limitations, three co-operative societies cutting across the three zones were randomly selected and fourteen wet mills representing the various AEZs further selected to represent each stratum. Finally, farm households were randomly selected from each of the selected factories using the random number tables. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, regression (log - linear model) and correlation analysis using Stata (version11). The results indicated that the mean age of the respondents was 52.95 years. This suggests that the small holder coffee farming community is skewed towards the aging which could negatively affect productivity in the farms. Out of the 76.52% of the fanners who needed credit, only 36.8% had access to adequate credit. This lack of adequate credit limits productivity. The study revealed that only 35.4% of farmers were aware of the Coffee Development Fund despite the existence of institution since 2006. The multiple regression analysis showed an R2 of 0.5217 for all variables investigated which means that 52.17% of the variation in yields can be explained by these variables. The explanatory variables which were statistically significant were access to adequate credit, having some source of cash from other enterprises or employment and consulting extension agents. It was also found that there was a strong positive relationship between price and the level ofre-investment (Pearson's r =0.814). This indicates that higher prices encourage reinvestment in coffee. However, the correlation analysis between price and yields showed a Pearson's correlation coefficient of 0.154 which was statistically insignificant. This implies that although price influenced yields positively, it did not necessarily lead to significantly higher yields. Higher prices need to be supported by the three significant variables in order to increase yields significantly. Agricultural policy effort on small holder coffee farming should thus focus on ensuring farmers get access to adequate credit, diversification of farm income base, and training. ,.
Analysis of Technical Efficiency of Smallholder Sorghum Producers in Machakos and Makindu Districts in Kenya
(2014-02-24) Chepng’etich, Evaline; Bett, E.K.; Nyamwaro, Sospeter O.
Majority of the rural households in Kenya depend mainly on agriculture as a source of food and livelihoods. Agricultural productivity has been declining due to many factors including climate change. Declining agricultural productivity has in turn resulted in increased food insecurity in the country. Consequently, there is a renewed interest in promoting drought-tolerant crops such as sorghum, which are known to perform well in the arid and semi-arid lands of the developing world. Owing to its ability to thrive in drought prone and low input conditions, sorghum production has been widely promoted among smallholder farmers in the arid and semi-arid parts of Kenya. However, performance of sorghum production among the smallholder farmers has remained low. This study was carried out to determine the technical efficiency of sorghum production among smallholder farmers in Machakos and Makindu districts in Kenya. Multistage sampling technique was used to sample a total of 143 sorghum-farming households; 71 households in Makindu district and 72 in Machakos district as representative samples. A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to collect data and information on farm inputs and outputs; and on farm and farmer characteristics. Data Envelopment Analysis technique was used to estimate efficiency scores, while a Tobit regression analysis model was used to determine the influence of farm and farmer characteristics on the technical efficiency. Result highlights showed that the average technical efficiency achieved overall in both districts was 41%. This implies that technical efficiency in sorghum production in Machakos and Makindu districts is low and could be improved by 59% through better use of available resources given the prevailing state of technology. Research findings suggest that technical efficiency was positively influenced by various farm and farmer characteristics such as land sizes planted with sorghum and use of manure; and formal education of the household head, household size, years of sorghum farming experience, membership to farmer associations, hired labour, and production advice given to farmers. It is recommended that in order to reduce technical inefficiency farmers should be trained appropriately to improve their agronomic knowledge on sorghum production . Farmers are also encouraged to form and be active members of farmer associations. Policies and programmes that promote extension services should be emphasized in order to improve performance of sorghum production enterprise in Machakos and Makindu districts, Kenya.
Assessment of Purple Passion Fruit Orchard Management and Farmers’ Technical Efficiency in Embu, Meru and Uasin-gishu Counties, Kenya
(2014-02-24) Karani, Charles Gichimu; Macharia, Ibrahim; Mwangi, M.
Horticulture industry sustains millions of livelihoods in Kenya. Over the last decade, passion fruit has emerged as an important high market value horticultural crop following the establishment of new and expansion of existing large scale beverage producers that use local fruits for juice extraction. There has also been growing export markets and increasing numbers of health conscious consumers. Currently, the productivity levels are low, at 8 ton ha-1 compared to potential of 24 ton ha-1. Purple passion fruit production is mainly done by small scale farmers (with land holding as low as 0.04 ha). The primary objective of this study was to assess purple passion fruit orchard management and technical efficiency of small-scale farmers in Embu, Meru and Uasin-Gishu Counties. Cross-sectional data from 123 randomly selected farmers was collected using a personally administered semi-structured questionnaire. In the analysis, descriptive statistics, stochastic frontier and multiple regression models were used. The results showed that the purple passion fruit production input elasticity was 0.95 which represented decreasing returns to scale. Orchard age, credit amount used, non-passion fruit income and County variables significantly and positively influenced TE at 5% level. The level of education, extension advice use frequency and market access positively and significantly influenced technical efficiency at 10% level. The overall mean technical efficiency was 59%. This indicated production costs saving estimate of 32% for the average farmer in attaining the TE of the most technically efficient purple passion fruit farmer (86%). The gamma parameter (γ) was 0.86 which indicates that 86% of the total variation in purple passion fruit output was due to technical inefficiencies. Farmers in Meru had the highest technical efficiency (65%) followed by Uasin Gishu (57%) while Embu had the lowest (47%). Mean management scores for the five practices (training of vines and pruning, weeding, watering, manure/fertilizer and pest/disease management) evaluated also followed the above trend across the Counties. Based on the results, increased emphasis on farmer update on farming trends through participatory methods (lead farmer approach, training, farm visits and demonstrations) is recommended. There is need for up-scaling orchard management practices among farmers to reduce the orchard age effect and prolong their lifespan. Credit access and use could be enhanced through increased formation and operations of services provision oriented farmers‟ associations. Farm and non-farm income activities diversification should be encouraged to a level that farmers can adequately manage so as to promote enterprises monetary inter-dependence. The study further recommends promotion of County cross-border farmer linkages in tapping the economic potential from passion fruit. This is expected to offer a platform for sharing ideas and success experiences thus increasing farmers‟ production efficiency and improving livelihoods.
Effect of pineapple (ananas comosus l. Merrill) and papaya (carica papaya l.) fruit extracts on sericin removal from silk moths cocoons in Kenya
(2014-05-20) Wainaina, Pauline Wairimu
Sericulture (Silk farming) is the rearing of silk moths for the production of raw silk. Silk farming originated from China where it was secretly practiced for many years before spreading to other parts of the world. Silk moths are grouped into mulberry silk moths (domesticated) and wild silk moths. Silk moth cocoon has a double filament made of insoluble protein known as fibroin which is embedded in a water soluble protein called sericin. Prior to processing cocoons, are boiled in strong alkali so as to dissolve the sericin a process called degumming. Proteinases enzymes such as papain from papaya (Carica papaya) and bromelain from pineapple (Ananas cosmosus) characterised by their proteolytic activity have the potential to hydrolyse sericin, thus increasing its solubility in water. This study sought to investigate the effect of extracts from pineapple and papaya on the solubility of sericin protein from cocoons of three species of silk moths: Gonometa postica, Argema mimosae and Bombyx mori at different temperatures. Twenty cocoons of each species were cut open, cleaned to remove the pupae remains and weighed. The cleaned cocoons were immersed in the degumming agents at various temperatures and five cocoons were taken out at 30 minutes intervals for 120 minutes. These cocoons were dried for two hours and then re-weighed. The degumming agents used were crude extracts from papaya and pineapple, commercial papain, commercial bromelain and their effects were compared with that of the conventionally used sodium bicarbonate and distilled water. The efficiency of the degumming processes was assessed using mean weight loss at different temperatures and was subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA). Where significant difference existed, mean separation was carried out using the Student-Newman-Keuls test. In G. postica cocoons, papain gave the highest mean weight loss at a temperature of 60°C for all time intervals. The highest mean weight loss from G.postica was 0.5 g at 60 ºC, 120 minutes in G. postica cocoons this was significantly different from the mean weight loss with other treatments. The least mean weight loss in G. postica was recorded in water and ripe papaya treatment which was significantly lower than the other treatments extract. A.mimosae cocoons showed highest weight loss with bromelain at 60°C, 90 minutes of but this was not significantly different with sodium bicarbonate. The least mean weight loss in A mimosae was recorded in papain and ripe papaya treatment 70°C, 120 minutes but this was not significantly lower than the other treatments extract. With B. mori cocoons, papain gave the highest mean weight loss of 0.12g at a temperature and time of 70° C, 60 minutes respectively, this was significantly different compared with the mean weight loss with all the other treatments. The results obtained from this study have shown that plant proteases can be utilised for effective degumming of cocoons. Commercial proteases were the best agent for degumming cocoons of G. postica and B. mori as it gave the highest mean sericin loss within the shortest duration. The results show that locally available fruit proteases can be used to remove sericin from silk moth cocoons. These offer farmers a cheaper local option while also shortening the time required for boiling hence saving fuel.
Socio-economic factors affecting farmers participation in vertical integration of the coffee value chain in Huye district, Rwanda
(2014-08-20) Nkurunziza, Issa
Coffee farming in Rwanda is an important sector that contributes significantly to the economy in terms of employment and income, especially for the smallholder coffee farmers in rural areas. In order to improve coffee production in terms of quality and quantity, farmers are encouraged to form and join cooperatives so that they can increase their vertical integration within the coffee value chain. Despite this strategy, level of participation of farmers in cooperatives is still low (21%) and slow. The objectives of this study were; (1) to determine the social and economic factors influencing farmers’ decision to participate in coffee cooperatives; (2) to investigate the socio-economic factors influencing the intensity of coffee production (coffee growing) and (3) to identify and analyse agronomic challenges that smallholder farmers’ face in production of coffee. The study was conducted in Huye District. A stratified sampling technique was used to select two strata with sample size of 230 comprising of 170 and 60 members and non-members of coffee cooperatives, respectively. The study relied on both primary and secondary data. The results revealed that farmers who joined cooperatives had yield of coffee equivalent to 759 kgs/ha compared to 635 kgs/ha for members and non-members respectively and an annual average farm net income corresponding to 223,000 RwFs and 193,000 RwFs for members and non-members respectively. Probit regression results revealed that off-farm income, access to credit, keeping farm records and trust positively influences farmers’ decision to participate in coffee cooperatives while female headed household, higher education level and large farm size found negatively influenced farmers’ decision to participate in coffee cooperatives. For Tobit regression, results showed that higher educational level, off-farm income and experiences in farming positively influenced the intensity of coffee production while female headed household and farm under other crops were found to negatively influence the coffee intensity. Results regarding agronomic problems showed that 19.4% and 13.3% found lacking mulch both members and non-members respectively while 13.5% members and 18.3% non-members showed to lack fertilizers. Based on the above results the study recommends support in the development of farmers’ cooperatives as a channel of being vertically integrated by the farmers thus increase production and income from their coffee. There is a need to intercrop coffee trees with annual crops which give mulches since lack of mulch has shown to be a major problem for coffee production. Also, the government should allow the farmers’ cooperatives to import fertilizers with tax exemption since the farmers delay to apply them or do not use them because of their costs or delayed distribution.
Contract Farming of Coconut in Kwale and Kilifi Counties: Participation and Productivity Analysis
(2014-08-26) Macharia, Christopher Mwangi
Coconut is mainly grown by small scale farmers in coastal Kenya. However, the marketing system is inefficient and the production low and this has hindered farmers from getting optimum benefit from coconut farming. Contract farming in coconut has been introduced since 2006 but it is limited and only a small number of farmers engage in it. This study analyzed coconut contract farming in relation to participation and productivity. It sought to characterize and obtain a better understanding of coconut contract farming, determine factors that influence participation and evaluate the effect of contract choice on productivity and market access. The study was conducted in Kwale County Msambweni division and Kilifi County in Watamu division. Stratified simple random method of sampling was used. The data was collected through formal interviews using a structured questionnaire. The data were analyzed in a comparative approach. Regression models were used to determine factors that influence participation, price and income. The study established significant difference in household demographics between contract and non-contract farmers. The descriptive analysis indicated that contract farmers were more educated, had bigger farms and more coconut trees than non-contract farmers. Unlike the contracted farmers, non-contract farmers had low trust on other farmers. Contract farmers’ price for coconut was 26 percent higher and their average income per tree was 39 percent higher. Regression analysis indicated that price, payment date and level of education of household head were the main factors that positively influenced participation in contract farming. It also established that presence of other sources of income and farmers’ need for credit affected the participation negatively. The study found that contract farming improved farmers’ income and access to market. It should therefore be promoted in coconut farming by developing policies that are enabling.
Profitability of smallholder pig farming in Tharaka-Nithi county, Kenya
(Kenyatta University, 2014-10-30) Micheni, Pauline Kananu
Pig industry sustains livelihoods of many families in Kenya. Pig rearing has been one of wellestablishedindustry in Kenya following growing export markets and increasing number of health conscious consumers. Pig production if efficiently managed has great potentials for increasing protein supply in Kenya. Smallholder pig farms in Tharaka-Nithi County have been facing varying and dismal profits. The main objective of this study will be to establish which institutional arrangements and management factors affect the profit efficiency of small-holder pig farmers in Tharaka-Nithi County. A multi-stage purposive sampling technique will be adopted to collect cross sectional data of eighty (80) smallholder pig farmers in Maara Constituency by the use of semi-structured interview schedules. The work will employ Data Envelopment Analysis to come up with profit efficiency rankings among the farmers and stochastic frontier profit function will be used to analyze the factors that affect profit efficiency. The data will be processed using STATA and DEA Frontier packages. The findings could be useful to the stakeholders of the pig industry sub sector to formulate policies pertaining to pig enterprise inputs, marketing issues and financial products and also can establish benchmarks which can be used as a package for enhancing and stabilizing profit efficiencies of smallholder pig farmers which in turn could help improve the Kenya economy
Impact of Feed Price Variability on Commercial Chicken Production in Murang'a County
(Kenyatta University, 2015) Njoroge, Samuel Chomba; Bett, Kiprotich Eric; Njehia, Bernard
Layers and broilers production suffer from high chicken feed prices or price variability in Kenya. Murang'a county is not an exception .. This study aimed at investigating the impact of chicken feeds price variability on layers and broilers production. The study investigated the impact of prices and quantities of layers mash and broiler finisher mash, rate at which farmers adjusted their chicken population levels, growth rates of chicken population and feed price and price variability of the feed prices. The study used compound growth rate model to estimate the rate of growth in layers and broilers population and chicken feed prices. Coefficient of variation was used to determine the variability of chicken feed prices. The Nerlovian model was used to estimate the rate at which farmers adjusted their layers and broilers population. Price elasticity of demand for layers and broiler finisher mash were investigated. The study used multiple regression model to estimate the effect of chicken population, lagged chicken feed prices, and lagged quantities of chicken feed consumed and time on current chicken population. The direction and magnitude of the relationship between the variables and chicken population were investigated. Data was collected from 60 operating and randomly selected chicken feed retailers and 134 chicken farmers. Data was obtained directly from chicken feed retailers and farmers from January to late April 2014. Semi-structured interviews were conducted using pretested questionnaires. The data obtained through interview surveys was processed and analysed to estimate the impacts of the various variable on chicken population. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 and excel was used to analyse the data. The study employed growth production and price theories and descriptive research design. The results of the study revealed that layers and broilers population grew at a continuous growth rate of 5.9% and 9.9% per year respectively. The annual growth rate of average retail price per 70kg was 19.7% for layers mash and 15.7% for broilers mash. The estimated coefficient of variation (COY) of retail price of layers mash was between 3.6% and 6.9% while that of broiler finisher mash ranged from 1.7% to price 2.0%. The results indicate that price variability had lower impact on the allocation of finances to broilers production than layers production. The Nerlovian coefficient of adjustment was moderate for layers (0.3) and low (0.2) for broilers. The results of econometric model showed that the lagged price of layers mash and broiler finisher mash had significant impact on the chicken population. There was a negative relationship between time and layers population. The study results indicate an increase in chicken population implying increased demand for chicken feeds. The increases in chicken feed prices have made feeds less affordable and have affected the allocation of finances to purchase them. Thus the government should promote establishment of feed factories, enhance market information and research, provision of extension services and better access finance to both farmers and feed traders.
Analysis of Consumer Preference in Product Attributes: A Case of Common Beans in Kiambu County, Kenya
(Kenyatta University, 2015) Gitonga, Hannah Wairimu
Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important source of livelihood and food for approximately three million households in Kenya. Consumers appreciate common bean more due to its nutritional value and health benefits. Between 2005 and 2009, a total of 403,604 MT of bean with a value of US$ 199,743,000 was produced in Kenya. The Kenyan bean market has a deficit of 14,256 metric tons and is dominated by old improved bean varieties, an indication of consumer preference for those beans. This is despite new varieties being released into the market following intensive research and breeding work done by research institutions. Consumer preference assessment gives important information on acceptability of a commodity by consumers. The primary objective of this study, therefore, was to analyze consumer preference for common bean varieties by attribute sensory test and willingness to pay for preferred attributes. This study focused on bean consumers and traders in two districts, Thika East and Thika West of Kiambu County. The region was chosen as a test bed for this study due to high utilization of common beans in most of the diets among the residents. Additionally the two districts were selected because of their high population, diverse socioeconomic characteristics of residents, and their rural and urban living setups. Semi structured questionnaires were used to elicit information from 212 consumers and 67 traders who were randomly selected. Bean variety preference was assessed using a preference scale of 1-7 score. A pairwise analysis of eight bean attributes was done to assess preference of bean attributes. This was followed by assessment of attributes in seven bean varieties using likert scale of 1-5 rank. A hedonic price model was used to analyze effect of preferred attributes on price consumers were willing to pay. Data analysis was done using descriptive and inferential statistics in Excel and SPSS software programs. Results showed that beans were an important part of respondents diet with majority of respondents (86%) consuming beans more than once a week. Rural respondents consumed beans more frequently compared to urban respondents; difference in consumption was statistically significant (p-value =0.025). Beans were popular with women (83%) and were consumed by all age groups but there was more consumption in the 31-40 years age group (26.8%). GLP 585 was ranked l ", GLP 2 was ranked 2nd and KAT X56 was ranked 3rd in preference by 64.7%, 43% 39.8% respondents respectively. GLP varieties were popular among urban respondents while rural respondents consumed both GLP and KAT varieties. Consumers had preference for cooking quality, keeping quality, color, taste, low flatulence and grain size attributes associated with GLP 585, KAT X56, GLP 2 and KAT B1 varieties. Consumers were willing to pay a premium for taste, price, cooking time and discount for grain size of GLP 585. They also discounted grain size in KAT X56 and KAT B9. Other discounts were in color of KAT B9, taste of GLP 2 and flatulence of KAT X56 varieties. Based on the findings of the study, it is recommended that government supports breeding and improvement programs to ensure seeds with preferred attributes are available and affordable to producers. This would enhance acceptability and utilization of beans by consumers. It is further recommended evaluation of KAT Bl' s, low consumer preference, yet it has preferred attributes.
Economic Analysis of Smallholder Organic Vegetable Production System in Kiambu and Kajiado Counties of Kenya
(Kenyatta University, 2015) Ndungu, S. K.
In Kenya, there are more than 200,000 farmers who have been trained on organic farming technologies and systems. Currently certified land under organic management in Kenya stands at 104,211 ha while the organic sub sector employs 12,647 farmers who are directly involved in production of different organic products. Although there are many documented reasons that make farmers to adopt organic farming system, economic benefits present one of the major motivations. These benefits however are not well documented in Africa. The study was conducted to evaluate the determinants of adoption and profitability of smallholder organic vegetable production system in Kajiado and Kiambu counties of Kenya. It also aimed at evaluating the impact of organic production system on profitability of smallholder vegetable production systems in the two counties so as to appraise its contribution to improvement of rural livelihoods. The study collected data on costs, returns, social economic characteristics, farmer characteristics and market characteristics for a sample of 215 smallholder vegetable farmers who were composed of 71 organic and 144 conventional farmers. The whole population of smallholder organic farmers growing vegetables was sampled while conventional farmers sample was made up of clusters established using Stratified sampling method. A logit regression model was used to evaluate the factors affecting adoption of organic production system among smallholder vegetable farmers. Factors associated with profitability of smallholder organic production system were evaluated using an OLS regression model while the impact of organic production system was evaluated using propensity score matching. Organic vegetable production system was found to have a positive significant impact of increasing farm gross margin by 45.16% among smallholder producers in Kiambu and Kajiado Counties of Kenya. The organic vegetable prices were found to be higher than conventional vegetable prices for all the vegetables. Additionally, organic production system was found to have higher production cost but higher gross margin as compared to conventional production system. Age, farming experience, irrigation, land ownership and County of residence were found to be associated with adoption of organic vegetable production system. Furthermore age, farming experience, number of trainings attended availability of irrigation, target market selected, production per acre, cost of production and price per unit had a bearing on the profitability of an organic smallholder vegetable farm. The study recommended wide adoption of organic production system as a tool to improve farm incomes of smallholder vegetable farmers in Kiambu and Kajiado counties of Kenya. Furthermore, the study recommended that organizations involved in promotion of organic farming in the two counties should design strategies that take cognizance of the important role of social economic, farm and market factors in determining profitability and adoption of smallholder organic vegetable production systems. The study concluded by recommending that further similar studies should incorporate the health and environmental benefits and the effect of conversion period while evaluating the economic benefits of organic production system.
Organic Economic Analysis of Smallholder Vegetable Production System in Kiambu and Kajiado Counties of Kenya
(Kenyatta University, 2015-01) Ndungu, Samuel Kiruku
In Kenya, there are more than 200,000 farmers who have been trained on organic farming technologies and systems. Currently certified land under organic management in Kenya stands at 104,211 ha while the organic sub sector employs 12,647 farmers who are directly involved in production of different organic products. Although there are many documented reasons that make farmers to adopt organic farming system, economic benefits present one of the major motivations. These benefits however are not well documented in Africa. The study was conducted to evaluate the determinants of adoption and profitability of smallholder organic vegetable production system in Kajiado and Kiambu counties of Kenya. It also aimed at evaluating the impact of organic production system on profitability of smallholder vegetable production systems in the two counties so as to appraise its contribution to improvement of rural livelihoods. The study collected data on costs, returns, social economic characteristics, farmer characteristics and market characteristics for a sample of 215 smallholder vegetable farmers who were composed of 71 organic and 144 conventional farmers. The whole population of smallholder organic farmers growing vegetables was sampled while conventional farmers sample was made up of clusters established using Stratified sampling method. A logit regression model was used to evaluate the factors affecting adoption of organic production system among smallholder vegetable farmers. Factors associated with profitability of smallholder organic production system were evaluated using an OLS regression model while the impact of organic production system was evaluated using propensity score matching. Organic vegetable production system was found to have a positive significant impact of increasing farm gross margin by 45.16% among smallholder producers in Kiambu and Kajiado Counties of Kenya. The organic vegetable prices were found to be higher than conventional vegetable prices for all the vegetables. Additionally, organic production system was found to have higher production cost but higher gross margin as compared to conventional production system. Age, farming experience, irrigation, land ownership and County of residence were found to be associated with adoption of organic vegetable production system. Furthermore age, farming experience, number of trainings attended availability of irrigation, target market selected, production per acre, cost of production and price per unit had a bearing on the profitability of an organic smallholder vegetable farm. The study recommended wide adoption of organic production system as a tool to improve farm incomes of smallholder vegetable farmers in Kiambu and Kajiado counties of Kenya. Furthermore, the study recommended that organizations involved in promotion of organic farming in the two counties should design strategies that take cognizance of the important role of social economic, farm and market factors in determining profitability and adoption of smallholder organic vegetable production systems. The study concluded by recommending that further similar studies should incorporate the health and environmental benefits and the effect of conversion period while evaluating the economic benefits of organic production system.
Economic Evaluation of Integrated Pest Management Technology for Control of Mango Fruit Flies in Embu County, Kenya
(Kenyatta University, 2015-01-15) Kibira, Mary Njeri
Mango is the third most important fruit in Kenya in terms of area and total production. Nutritionally, mango fruit is important for vitamins and mineral provision in the daily diet of Kenyans. As an export crop, mango earns the country foreign exchange, acts as source of food and household income especially for resource poor farmers, contributing to poverty alleviation and achievement of Millennium Development Goal number one. However, mango production and marketing is constrained by several factors, among which pests and disease infestation is major. Among the pests, mango fruit fly present a real challenge to producers and exporters due to losses incurred at the farm level and infested mango rejections at export points. To reduce losses, cost of production and increase the profit at producer level, International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) developed and implemented an Integrated Pest Management fruit fly control package (IPMFFCP) in Embu County, Kenya. The impact of this intervention, however, had not been evaluated. This study therefore evaluated the impact of this intervention on magnitude of mango rejection due to fruit fly damage, insecticide expenditure and net income from mango production. The study also established households’ perception of the effect of the intervention on human health. The study used survey research design in which a structured questionnaire was administered to 257 randomly selected IPMFFCP participants and non participants from the intervention and control areas. Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression analysis and Difference-in-difference (DD) method were used to assess the impact of the IPMFFCP on magnitude of mango rejection and insecticide expenditure. Two Stage Least Square (2SLS) analysis and DD were used to evaluate the impact of IPMFFCP on net income from mango production. Descriptive statistics were used to assess the household perception of the effect of IPMFFCP on health. The results indicated that on average IPMFFCP participants had approximately 54.5 percent reduction in magnitude of mango rejection than the non participants. The participants spent approximately 46.3 percent less on insecticide per acre than the non participants and on average received approximately 22.4 percent more net income than the non participants. Results also showed that 78 percent of households perceived the intervention improved human health. The results imply that IPMFFCP participants are better off in terms of magnitude of mango rejection and insecticide expenditure reduction and net income from mango production increment. The study recommends expansion of IPMFFCP intervention to the entire mango growing area in Embu County to improve the farmers’ livelihood through the increased profitability.
Effective marketing of dairy product in Kenya (With particular reference to Kenya Co-operative Creameries Limited - KCC Ltd)
(2016) Muroiga, Wilfred M
Effective marketing has been based on dynamics of market mix. A new concept based on "8" Ps has been explored and used to segment current and potential market of KCC. The concept has been applied to assess the marketing effectiveness in KCC. Technological and management development is a necessity in the Dairy industry and this has been broadly explored in the advanced literature review. Research and development is a necessity in the dairy industry and the subject has been covered in the project with a recommendation made to KCC to establish a research centre. Recommendation on future study and a conclusion summary has also been made at the end of the project.
Analysis of factors influencing farmers' participation in collective marketing initiatives in Maara, Meru south and Mbeere South Sub-Counties, Kenya
(2016) Mate, Harold M
This study was carried out in Meru South, Maara and Mbeere South sub-counties in the Republic of Kenya. The purpose of this study was to analysis the factors affecting farmers' participation in collective marketing initiatives. Marketing of agricultural commodities in Kenya is unsystematic coupled with high transport costs, low prices, exploitation by middle men and insufficient markets information among other factors that force farmers to sell when prices are lowest. Studies in the past have focused and examined the advantages of collective action, while little is known or documented on the dynamics of smallholder participation in collective action initiatives. The objective of this study were to evaluate the effects of farmer groups' characteristics and activities on participation in collective marketing of food crops; To examine the household and farm factors that influences the participation of farmers in collective marketing of food crops and to assess farmers' perception on the benefits of marketing food crops collectively. Simple random sampling was used to sample individual farmers while purposive sampling was used to sample farmer groups who participated in the study. Primary data were collected using semi - structured interview schedules administered to farmer groups (n=59) and individual farmers (n=273). Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, Logit regression and Principal Component Analysis in Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS). Results indicate that the age of the group had significant effect on the participation of a group in collective marketing (p<0.05). The average age of groups not participating in collective marketing was 9.07 years while those participating had a mean age of 5.44 years (p<0.05). Group activities significantly affected the participation of groups in collective marketing initiatives (p<0.05). Training in collective action positively influenced the participation of farmer groups in collective marketing (p<0.05). Participation of farmers in collective marketing was influenced by group membership (p<0.05), land tenure (p<0.05), off farm income (p

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