Analysis of Technical, Organizational and Institutional Dairy Practices and Their Effect on the Poverty Status of Farm Household in the Highlands of Kenya

Abstract

Promotion of technical, organizational and institutional dairy practices by the dairy stakeholders could address the continued decrease in milk quantity and quality in Kenya. The study considered a sample of 1146 households from three milksheds (Mukurweini Wakulima Dairy Limited, Happy Cow Limited and New Kenya Cooperative Creameries) and achieved four objectives. The first objective characterized dairy practices adopted by dairy farmers using a Categorical Principal Component Analysis (CATPCA). A double hurdle (DH) model assessed adoption determinants of technical dairy practices and intensity of adopting organizational and institutional dairy practices in the second objective. The third objective used principal component analysis to create an asset index and thereafter an ordered probit regression to assess the impact of improved dairy practices grouped into technical, organizational, institutional and a combination of different dairy practices on poverty. The Multinomial Logit Model (MNL) established the dairy farmers’ perception on farmer field schools (FFS) in the fourth objective. The CATPCA results revealed that more farmers in the milkshed of Mukurweini Wakulima Dairy Limited (MWDL) adopted technical and organizational dairy practices like milk sale through groups and artificial insemination unlike households in New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (NKCC) and Happy Cow Limited (HCL). The double hurdle results indicated that access to dairy information positively influenced adoption of technical dairy practices in the three milksheds. Intensity of adoption of organizational and institutional dairy practices were influenced by income, farm size, and access to dairy information. Adoption of technical dairy practices reduced poverty in the three milksheds.

Moreover, in MWDL, the joint adoption of organizational and institutional dairy practices decreased the probability of households to remain poor. Household head age and group membership were among positively influenced perception of farmers on FFS. The study conclude that the adoption of dairy practices at the farm and milkshed contribute in improving the the dairy farmers’ welfare. As a result of low adoption of organizational and institutional dairy practices, the study suggests more intervention by the development partners, national and county governments to promote the adoption of the three types of dairy practices in three milksheds in an effort to reduce poverty. Special focus should be to the female headed households, particularly in lower income level. The county governments and development partners need to support cooperative societies to improve access to dairy information and linking farmers with fodder seed sources to boost farmers’ perception on FFS.