Role of Employment Income in Food Security in Commercial Sugarcane Farming Households in Mumias Division, Kakamega County, Kenya

Abstract

The role of employment income in food security in commercial sugar cane farming households on access to food security in Mumias East Division is a thorny issue especially recently as millers grapple with losses and delay in payment of farmers after cane deliveries to the millers. The study was founded on utility maximization peasant theory and sustainable livelihood approach framework. The specific objective of the study wasto examine where sugarcane income has an effect on household access to food security in Mumias East Division. This study employed a survey design targeting sugarcane farmers from Mumias East Division. There are approximately 8691 sugarcane farmers in Mumias East Division as shown in Mumias sugar company inventory. The study used a sample of 368 respondent based on Krejcie and Morgan formula for determination of sample size of research activity. Data was analyzed using statistical packages of social sciences (SPSS version 20). The finding indicated that there is a very small negative relationship between the employment income and household food insecurity scores.