Influence of field practice on sugarcane production in Webuye East Sub-County in Bungoma County, Kenya

Abstract

Sugarcane production in Kenya has declined, leading to the importation of sugar to meet the country’s demand. Webuye East Sub-County (WES) has witnessed dwindling production in sugarcane which has been attributed to the reduced land due to the increasing population. Little focus has been made on unravelling the effects of field crop practices on sugarcane production in WES. Therefore, this study looks at field crop practices influencing sugarcane production in WES. The study was anchored on Cobb Douglas's production theory. A  descriptive survey research design was used. A sample of ninety-six (96) respondents was systematically sampled from the target population of 6135 registered sugarcane farmers. In addition, five field officers and eight weighbridge workers in WES were purposively sampled to provide essential information for the study. Questionnaires, interviews, observations, and documentary analyses were data collection tools. Data were analysed using SPSS and Chi-square analysis. The study found that a farmer could achieve, on average, 23.1% more tonnage of sugarcane in an acre of land when essential agronomic practices were practised, in which field crop practices gave 29.2%. There was a significant positive relationship between critical agronomic practices and sugarcane production at 0.05 significance. Field crop production practices significantly influenced cane production in WES and this call for stakeholders to put in place intervention measures that can help achieve maximum cane yield. It is recommended that public meetings for sugarcane armers be held regularly in every ward in the sub-county and loan services be offered to farmers.