Improving Kenya's Domestic Horticultural Production and Marketing

groups: households that did not produce any horticultural crops, households that produced but
did not sell, and five groups of equal size (quintiles) among those that did sell horticultural
produce, ranging from those that sold the least (quintile 1) to those that sold the most
(quintile 5). Results suggest that horticultural sales are highly concentrated in Kenya. Only
3% of households in the sample did not produce any horticultural crops and therefore also did
not sell, but over 20% of those that did produce did not sell any. Among those that did sell,
one-fifth (15% of the total population) sold extremely small amounts – only Ksh 234 on
average. Nearly 80% of the total value of horticultural sales among all households was
accounted for by the largest 20% of all sellers, who represent only 15% of the total
population.
Table 3.5 Income shares by geographical area in selected areas of Kenya
Geographical Area Cereals, tubers, Horticultural IndusLive- In-formal Salary Total Total
pulses crops trial crop stock off-farm and (%) (Ksh
Retained Sold Retained Sold sales (wages+ Remit- per
business) tances capita)
Coastal Lowlands 19.7 1.6 11.5 4.1 0.0 3.2 37.3 22.6 100 13,493
Eastern Lowlands 18.9 2.9 10.2 8.4 0.7 12.7 20.5 25.6 100 17,006
Western Lowlands 17.4 3.8 6.6 3.7 4.7 22.7 18.5 22.6 100 7,321
Western Transitional 15.7 4.5 5.8 5.0 33.2 7.3 16.0 12.5 100 17,865
High Pot’ Maize Zone 13.4 14.3 3.8 3.6 3.9 26.1 19.1 15.8 100 20,847
Western Highlands 20.8 3.4 12.4 13.9 16.0 6.6 8.3 18.6 100 12,716
Central Highlands 8.2 3.5 0.5 6.9 29.1 23.9 12.2 16.7 101 28,501
Table 3.6. Concentration of horticultural sales: percent of total sales by quintiles of total
household horticultural sales value
Sales category % of
farmers
Average value of
horticultural
production per hh
(Ksh)
20
% of total
prodn in
sample
Average value
of horticultural
sales per hh
(Ksh)
% of total
sales in
sample
No production 3.2 — — — ---
Production, no sales 21.2 3,911 5% 0 0%
1 Lowest sales 15.1 3,475 3% 234 0%
2 15.1 5,927 6% 1,112 2%
3 15.2 8,953 9% 2,807 5%
4 15.1 15,496 15% 7,850 14%
5 Highest sales 15.1 61,995 61% 43,980 79%
Table 3.7 examines how these households are distributed across our seven zones. We see
that Western Lowlands has by far the highest proportion of non-producers, and that it along
with Coastal Lowlands has the highest proportion of non-sellers and the lowest proportion of