Varietal Turn-over and Their Effect on Yield and Food Security – Evidence from 20 Years of Household Surveys in Kenya

Agricultural technology is key to food security in SSA, but new maize varieties are not able to replace the old, trusted ones. This study uses data from four representative household surveys conducted in Kenya over 21 years, to show that younger maize varieties have a clear, although limited, effect on yield (4 kg/ha/year controlling for fertilizer) and food security. Unfortunately, this is not sufficient to entice farmers to adopt them, and adoption rates have barely increased despite the market liberalization that brought many private seed companies and their varieties in the market, as the parastatal Kenya Seed Company continues to dominate the market. As a result, in combination with low fertilizer use, yields have stagnated for the last three decennia.