Urban maize meal consumption patterns : strategies for improving food access for vulnerable urban households in Kenya

In the context of proposed policy reforms to liberalize Kenyan food and agricultural markets, this report examines urban maize consumption patterns and the implications of such policy reforms for urban food security, using a logit modeling technique to analyze data from a stratified, random sample of 350 households in Nairobi. The study"s conclusions challenge conventional assumptions about fixed consumer tastes and preferences in relation to agriculture policy. (1) Consumer preferences can be, and in this case may have been, largely policy-driven. (2) Consumer subsidies on refined maize meal in Kenya have not necessarily promoted food security because they (and associated controls on maize marketing) have entrenched a relatively high-cost marketing system and impeded the development of lower-cost channels. (3) Posho meal consumption in Nairobi appears to be negatively related to household income, while sifted meal consumption is positively related; thus, the benefits of the subsidy are inversely related to household income, contrary to stated policy goals. (4) The difficulty (measured in time) of acquiring posho meal is an important factor influencing its consumption, highlighting the importance of convenience and competing demands on household members" time. (5) Market reforms that allow consumer preferences to be better articulated may promote: improvements in access to food, without need for subsidies; agricultural productivity gains, through shifts in the choice of production techniques; and growth in employment and income distribution, from shifts in volumes through alternative marketing channels and their associated technologies.