Evaluating Smallholder Farmers’ Willingness to Pay for Improved Maize Dryers in Njoro Sub-County, Nakuru, Kenya

Maize is most common staple food in Sub-Saharan Africa but in most cases, preserved using the traditional drying method which expose maize to severe losses and quality deterioration. Improved maize drying methods are therefore considered an alternative technique to dry maize. Studies from developed countries have found improved dryers to be more efficient and sustainable, however, developing countries like Kenya are still yet to adopt these technologies. Evaluating smallholder maize farmers’ willingness to pay for improved maize dryers in Njoro Sub-County explains this slow adoption rate. This paper sampled 306 small-scale maize farmers and characterized them based on their willingness to use the dryers. Double bounded choice model was then used to determine farmers’ willingness to pay. The results show that commercial maize production (P- value =0.078, β=13.92958), cooperative membership (P-value=0.053, β=24.40269), higher maize prices (P-value =0.022, β=0.0276285) and subjective norms (P-value=0.005, β=23.75356) positively influenced willingness to pay, while factors like familiarity (P-value=0.044, β=- 34.41718) and liking of the maize dryer (P-value=0.051, β=-16.46909) had a negative impact. The findings emphasize the importance of considering education, farming experience, land size, cooperative membership, access to extension services, and commercial market channels when marketing improved maize dryers. The ideal adopters are farmers with advanced education, years of farming experience, larger land size, cooperative membership, and access to relevant services. To enhance the adoption of improved maize dryers, stakeholders should support farmers in expanding production land, joining cooperatives, accessing extension services, and connecting with commercial maize markets. Additionally, awareness programs targeting older farmers with large households and those lacking post-harvest training may help address factors associated with unwillingness to use improved maize dryers.