Journal of Agricultural Economics and Development Vol. 3(5), pp. 067-077, July 2014 ISSN 2327-3151 ©2014 Academe Research Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Consumers’ preference for quality in three African indigenous vegetables in Western Kenya

Marcia M. Croft¹, Maria I. Marshall² and Stephen C. Weller¹*

¹Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, 625 Agriculture Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA.

²Department of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University, 610 Purdue Mall, West Lafayette, IN 47907, Kenya.

*Corresponding author: E-mail: weller@purdue.edu. Tel: 765-494-1333.

Accepted 4 July, 2014

Abstract

African Indigenous Vegetables are an important source of income generation for smallholder farmers in Western Kenya. Though grading of produce and investment in post-harvest handling is limited, these results show a strong market for high quality African Indigenous Vegetables at a premium price. A choice experiment approach was used to evaluate consumer preference for high quality in three Kenyan cities for three vegetable species: nightshade (Solanum spp.), spider plant (Cleome gynandra), and amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus). Female consumers and those who generally spent more on produce were more likely to select high quality vegetables, but the market for these vegetables differed greatly by species. Consumers were significantly more likely to choose high quality nightshade if they had a home garden while preference for high quality spider plant was more variable from city to city than either of the other two vegetable species. Overall, 71% of consumers surveyed chose at least one high quality product at a premium price; this is a strong indication that consumers in Western Kenya are willing to pay slightly more for African Indigenous Vegetables of the best quality.

Key words: Consumer preference, indigenous vegetables, Kenya, market access, market linkages, smallholder farmers, traditional vegetables, urban consumers.