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Is Older Better? Maize Hybrid Change on Household Farms in Kenya

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dc.contributor.author Smale, Melinda
dc.contributor.author Olwande, John
dc.date.issued 2011
dc.date.accessioned 2021-03-30T07:11:05Z
dc.date.available 2021-03-30T07:11:05Z
dc.identifier.uri http://41.89.96.81:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/2349
dc.description.abstract Abstract A globally-recognized maize “success story” since the 1970s, Kenya’s first maize hybrid diffused faster than did hybrids in the U.S Corn Belt during the 1930s-1940s. Today, a hybrid released in 1986 still dominates on farms in Kenya, despite the dramatic increase in the number of hybrids, breadth of seed suppliers, and range of hybrids sold as seed markets liberalize. Claims of stagnating yields and stagnating adoption are offset here, at least in part, by longitudinal survey data showing rising yields and adoption rates on farms. However, as the overall percent of maize farmers growing hybrids tops 80 percent and the seed industry matures, the slow pace of hybrid replacement may still be cause for concern. This paper begins an exploration of factors affecting the age of hybrids on farms in Kenya. We find a strong farmer response to the seed-to-grain price ratio—evidence of a commercial orientation even on household farms, and also of the need to “get (seed) prices right” in the industry. en_US
dc.description.sponsorship United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Michigan State University (MSU), and Egerton University, Njoro, Kenya. Others include the World Bank, European Union, Department for International Development (DFID), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) en_US
dc.language.iso en en_US
dc.publisher Tegemeo Institute en_US
dc.subject Maize Hybrid Change -- Household Farms en_US
dc.title Is Older Better? Maize Hybrid Change on Household Farms in Kenya en_US
dc.title.alternative Working Paper 48 en_US
dc.type Working Paper en_US


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  • Tegemeo Institute [96]
    Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development is a policy research institute under the Division of Research and Extension ofEgerton University. The Institute is established under Statute 23 (14-t) of the Egerton University Statutes, 2013 under the Universities Act , 2012 (No. 42 of 2012) and its Instruments.

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