Drivers of Transformations in Smallholder Indigenous Vegetable Value Chains in Western Kenya: Evolution of Contract Farming

Abstract

Ochieng' Justus World Vegetable Centre Horticultural farmers, especially vegetable producers are characterized by poor access to inputs such as credit and operate in unreliable inputs and outputs markets. Empirical evidence shows that contract farming can potentially solve these constraints. However, contract violation is evident among smallholder farmers in many developing countries. This study assessed the main drivers of recent transformations in A/Vs value chains including the emerging forms of and drivers of contract violation among smallholder farmers in Western Kenya. Results from analysis of data from a focused group discussion and key informant interviews showed that climate change and technology are among the key drivers.

Vertical market linkages between smallholder African indigenous vegetables farmers and other market actors in Bungoma County

“…This has led to increased yields and improved incomes for smallscale farmers. According to Alulu et al (2020), Commercial production of AIVs in Kenya in early stage but there has been increased investment in recent years. Modern agricultural farming such as good agricultural practices is being used by smallholder AIVs farmers to produce AIVs for marketing in locally and international markets.…”

“…African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) are regarded as crop vegetables that originated naturally in Africa, whose roots, fruits, or leaves are used and largely accepted by local and rural communities and, increasingly, in urban and peri-urban communities through habit, custom, and tradition (Muhanji et al, 2011). In Kenya, over 200 different species of AIVs (Bokelmann et al, 2022) are grown on 45,099 ha, with a total production volume of 224,751 MT worth $56,215,149 annually (Alulu et al, 2020). The most widely produced AIVs in Kenya are African nightshade and cowpeas (Kebede and Bokelmann, 2017), along with spider plants, vegetable amaranth, black nightshade, cowpea, jute mallow, and pumpkin leaves (Riziki, 2018).…”

Comparison of technical efficiency and technology gaps between contracted and non-contracted vegetable farmers in Western Kenya

“…For instance, in the early years (1980s) smallholder farmers used to produce these vegetables for subsistence only implying that the vegetables were being cultivated in small quantities. As time went by (2000s) farmers started producing the vegetables for both consumption and marketing purposes (Alulu et al, 2020). As from late 2010, smallholder farmers had started commercializing vegetable production and one of the drivers of this trend was increased market demand due to increased awareness of health benefits by consumers in both rural and urban areas.…”