10th International Research Conference Proceedings Chuka University, 2023

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Browsing 10th International Research Conference Proceedings Chuka University, 2023 by Subject "adoption"

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    Impact of adoption of risk management strategies on milk production among smallholder dairy cattle farmers in Meru County, Kenya.
    (Chuka University, 2024) Mutuma, G. M.; Kinyua, J. M.; Gichure, M. N.,; Mwangi, D. I.
    A majority of smallholder dairy cattle farmers make their income primarily from milk production. The dairy sector contributes 14% of Kenya's agricultural GDP. The SDC farmers face a number of risks throughout the process of milk production. These include environmental, economic, and social factors; that are caused by production, marketing, and finance activity. The ramifications of the risks have not been addressed, and risk mitigation strategies have not been applied correctly. The study was conducted to determine the impact of adoption of risk management strategies in milk production among smallholder dairy cow farmers in Imenti South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya. Propensity score matching regression model was used to investigate the impact of risk management strategies adoption on milk output. The results showed that adoption of vaccination, insurance and milk preservation were statistically significant in improving milk production. However, off-farm investment and diversification were statistically insignificant in improving milk production. This was due to the fact that there would be divided attention and less time allocation on milk production if the farmer adopted off-farm investment. Limited land size factor affected the adopted diversification since the farmer will allocated more land to one enterprise example crop production hence limiting the other which is dairy cattle production. The results will provide baseline data for prospective risk analysis studies on smallholder dairy farming enterprise. Findings of this study will enable the dairy cattle farmers to understand the impact risk has on their production and the benefit of adopting risk management strategies in order to increase productivity.
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    Likelihood of social statuses to influence access to agricultural information among farmers in Chuka Sub-County, Kenya.
    (Chuka University, 2024) Wakoli, A. L.; Mwiti, R. G.; Kiramana, J. K
    Access to agricultural information is essential if current global problems related to food insecurity and climate change are to be addressed. Empirical evidence shows that access to agricultural information positively impacts agricultural development by enhancing farmers' adoption of agricultural technologies (Caracciolo & Keizer, 2015). Although research on the accessibility of agriculture information is growing, lack of information exists that show the likelihood of social statuses to influence adequate access to agricultural information among farmers. The study focused on educational level, farm size and farm income as social status variables. These study’s objectives were to assess the levels of farmers’ social statutes and determine the likelihood of social statuses to influence adequate access to agricultural information among farmers in Chuka Sub- County. Descriptive correlational research design was used to collect data from a sample of 377 farmers selected using stratified random sampling from three wards in the sub- county. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data using five-point Likert-type items. Collected data was analyzed quantitatively using the Statistical Package for Social Science. Multiple linear regression was used to analyze relationships between the selected study variables on social status. The study found that 30.2% had a university degree, secondary education (27.1%), college/polytechnic education (26.5%), and primary education (14.6%). The results revealed that the majority of the farmers (37.4%) had farm sizes ranging from 0.0 to 2.9 acres. About 27% owned between 3.0 and 4.9 acres while 23.6% of the farmers owned between 5.0 and 6.9 acres. Very few farmers (12%) owned more than 7 acres. The results showed that majority of the farmers (37.4%) had farm sizes ranging from 0.0 to 2.9 acres. 27% owned between 3.0 and 4.9 acres while 23.6% of the farmers owned between 5.0 and 6.9 acres. 12% of farmers owned more than 7 acres. The results indicated that there was a significant likelihood for farmers in Chuka Sub County to access agricultural information based on their social status.