The effect of sustainable farming practices and soil factors on the technical efficiency of maize farmers in Kenya

Abstract

This study analyzed the effect of sustainable farming practices and soil factors on the technical efficiency of maize farmers in Kenya. Data were obtained from household survey carried out on 320 maize farmers in two districts in Kenya. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the stochastic production frontier model. The result showed that about 58.00 percent of the farmers were male, while about 42.00 percent were female. The result on sustainable farming practices showed that majority (62.50%) of the maize farmers employed sustainable farming practices on their farmlands. The significant estimates of the production function were farm size (1.04) at one percent, vegetative cover (0.03) at 10 percent and labor (0.24) at one percent. The significant determinants of technical inefficiency were household size (0.18) at five percent, sex (-6.00) at one percent, education (-3.83) at one percent, mostly sandy soil (20.77) at one percent, sand-clay soil (12.09) at one percent, clay soil (11.03) at one percent, loamy soil (-7.31) at 10 percent, good fertile soil (10.60) at one percent, very good fertile soil (7.34) at one percent and sustainable farming practices (-6.74) at one percent. The study concluded that sustainable farming practices and soil factors had significant effect on the technical efficiency of maize farmers in the study area.