Resilience factors in the coffee sector of Kenya: From food security to product removal

Abstract

As in many countries, the coffee sector of Kenya was strongly affected by the international crises in coffee prices of 1998 to 2004, doubled of a strong inflation. Still, the agricultural advisory services continue to recommend monoculture of coffee to optimize quality. In 2008, the price increase of cereals and the inputs further reduced the purchasing power of the producers. Today, the actors in the coffee sector, concerned by the future of coffee culture in Kenya, question its profitability. The objective of this research is to understand the factors explaining the permanence of coffee in this context. During research undertaken in 2008-2010, 160 producers of three cooperatives located in the principal coffee producing zone of Mount Kenya were interviewed on their practices, activities and projects, agricultural or other. The results showed that the benefit of coffee is low, even worthless for the majority of the producers. However, the coffee-trees always present on the farms are part of a multifonctionnal and agroforestry system. Furthermore, where the coffee is multipurpose, it provides monetary income, employment, food safety and access to credit through the cooperative to pay for inputs and schooling. Considering the three studied zones, the results showed that the practices concerning coffee are related to the capacity of the cooperative to manage risk in case of crisis as well as other production opportunities. The study of agrarian dynamics, makes it possible to understand the phenomenon of coffee resilience in Kenya and highlights ideas to take into account when developing a focus based not solely on pure coffee culture but on a production set of the Mount Kenya area by also considering the dairy sector.