ABSTRACT Despite the apparent importance of the dairy sub-sector to Kenya’s economy, the sector is plagued with low milk production. The general objective of the study was to assess dairy performance among the small-scale farmers in Meru County. The specific objectives were (i) to characterize small-scale dairy farmers; (ii) to assess the profitability of small-scale dairy enterprises; and (iii) to determine the factors influencing profitability among small-scale dairy farmers in Meru Coun...
ABSTRACT Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is one of the most popular vegetable crops grown worldwide, owing to its nutritive value, income generation and diversified use. Tomato cultivation in the coastal region of Kenya is limited by root knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) and Fusarium oxysporum. A survey was done in five farming counties of the Coastal region of Kenya. Meloidogyne spp. and F. oxysporum were isolated from diseased tomato plants and identified. Host resistance and interaction...
ABSTRACT Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is a valuable vegetable crop in Kenya, grown mainly by small-scale farmers.It provides food security, nutrition and income for many small-holder farmers. Despite its economic importance, tomato production faces major challenges including scarcity of high quality fruits, insect pests and diseases. Currently farmers have relied on application of pesticides to manage the tomato pests. Pesticides are expensive to the farmer and have a negative impact to ...
ABSTRACT Drought has become a major contributor to food insecurity in sub-Sahara Africa. Drought-tolerant crops such as cassava and sweet potato can help alleviate this situation. However, lack of affordable healthy planting materials of farmer-preferred varieties is a major constraint to sweet potato and cassava production. Conventional tissue culture technology offers an important solution to this but it is very costly, making plantlets out of reach for resource poor farmers. Hence, it is n...
ABSTRACT There is an urgent need to improve production and marketing conditions of small holder farmers in Kordofan region of Sudan in order to alleviate poverty and enhance food security. This study was conducted to determine the profitability of the sesame value chain as one of the viable options that can address the challenges of small holder fanners. This study characterized the sesame value chain from producers to processors in terms of material and information flows as well as theinter...
ABSTRACT Nairobi City County is faced with acute water scarcity. The daily deficit is currently 170,000 m3 /day which accounts for about 23%. This deficit will escalate as population increases. However, streets are often flooded during heavy rains and water harvesting has been neglected. The County relies mainly on surface water sources from Athi River basin, Tana River basin and over 3000 boreholes. The objectives of this study were to assess volumes of rainwater that can be harvested from ...
ABSTRACT Integration of crop residues, inorganic N and appropriate tillage system is an important strategy for improving soil fertility, enhancing crop yields and reducing food insecurity. Such integration under zero tillage systems could enhance soil structural development and nutrient management hence mitigating against soil impoverishment through nitrogen and carbon losses. Crop residues combined with inorganic N in zero tillage results to a controlled immobilization-mineralization proce...
ABSTRACT The macadamia industry in Kenya has been faced with numerous operational and marketing challenges forcing the government to impose export ban of raw nuts since 2008 to date. The then Ministry of Agriculture appointed a task force in 2011 to specifically look into challenges that have been facing the macadamia industry including import ban of Kenya’s kernel by USA. Export of macadamia nuts from Kenya has also dropped from 2 nd to 5 th position in sales volume in the world from 1990...
ABSTRACT Food insecurity and hunger are global challenges attributed to poor crop harvests, land degradation, low soil moisture and declining soil fertility. Low maize yields and household food insecurity in Kajiado, Kenya could be alleviated by use of sustainable agricultural practices such as conservation agriculture (CA), integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) and increased water use efficiency. This study was carried out in Kajiado during the long rainy season of March-July, 2016 to...
ABSTRACT Corporate Social Responsibility, otherwise known as CSR, has been defined as the continuing commitment by businesses to contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families, as well as the local community and society. Studies have shown that businesses can no longer ignore communities within their areas of operations otherwise they risk harmonious coexistence. For many companies, managing CSR is no longer seen as an extra cost or...
ABSTRACT A lot of effort is put on 'proximate' threats to conservation, overlooking the 'ultimate' conservation goals in the process. Ultimately, attempts need to be made to conserve not just individuals or populations, but processes that have been on-going over vast geographical space and long evolutionary time, such as gene flow and natural selection. So far, little is known about these historical processes that decisions affecting the management of species in fragmented landscapes are alw...
ABSTRACT This study was designed to analyze profit and risk management strategies in selected agribusinesses in Imo, Nigeria. The methods of proportionate sampling, followed by random sampling techniques were adopted in selecting the Local Government Areas and the sample size. Data were collected with the use of questionnaire administered on 168 agribusiness entrepreneurs (87 food crops and 81 livestock entrepreneurs). The data collected were analyzed using frequency distribution, percentage...
ABSTRACT Trees provide both direct and indirect benefits to humans, who depend on them for their livelihoods. Forest ecosystems are vulnerable to over-utilization and exploitation due to the sensitivity of its complex and highly diverse ecosystem. The aim of the study was to determine the human impact on tree species diversity, abundance, plant population structure and uses of forest trees by local communities adjacent to Chemususu forest Reserve in Koibatek Sub-County, Baringo County. Ques...
ABSTRACT Reduced food productivity in smallholder farms is the principal cause of food insecurity in semi-arid parts of Kenya. This is mainly attributed to decline in soil fertility, low and unreliable rainfall, land degradation and adverse effects of climate change. The solution lies in the efficient use of nutrients and planting of drought tolerant crop varieties that can cope with the low rainfall in the ASALs. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of FYM, mineral fertilizers a...
ABSTRACT Gulella taitensis is a land snail of the family Streptaxidae and genus Gulella. It is endemic to Taita hills and categorized as endangered on the IUCN Red List. The species is threatened by habitat loss and disturbance due to human activities. Two people sampled snails at four sampling plots using standard timed direct search for one hour. Soil samples were collected from four different points within these sampling plots, and its pH, calcium and electrical conductivity obtained using...