Katheka, John2012-05-182012-05-182012-05-18http://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/4686The HD 9235.B4 K3Agriculture remains the mainstay of the economy of Kenya. It not only tops the list of foreign exchange earnings for the country but is also the source of livelihood in terms of food production in the country. Beans are second only to maize as a source of food in Kenya. This study, which consists of six chapters, looks at the marketing systems for beans in Machakos district of the Eastern province of Kenya. Eastern province is the major bean producer in Kenya and Machakos is one of the leading districts in the production of beans in the Province (see Appendix III). Mostly small-scale farmers grow the crop by intercropping it with other crops, for example maize. The district lies between high and low potential zones. The high and medium potential areas are the surplus bean areas while the low potential areas are the deficit bean areas. The research problem addressed to by this study is mainly the lack of information on bean production and marketing in Machakos district in particular and Kenya in general. The specific objective of this study is to describe the marketing systems for beans in Machakos District and to identify the factors affecting the marketing efficiency. Both primary and secondary data are used. The primary data was collected through questionnaires and is used for empirical results in Chapter five. The secondary data is incorporated in chapter one. Descriptive and frequency tables and multiple regression results analyses are presented in Chapter five, which discusses the results. Chapter six gives the summary and conclusions of the study findings. The chapter also suggests some policy recommendations, which could be implemented to improve the production, consumption and marketing of beans in Machakos district in particular and Kenya in general.enBeans -- harvesting -- Kenya -- Machakos District//Marketing -- research -- Kenya -- Machakos -- districtThesis