Understanding Farmers’ Compliance with Agri-Food Safety Regulations in Kenya

Abstract

<p>Compliance with agri-food safety regulations (e.g., pesticide use) is important for food security, public health management, and economic development in many developing countries. However, balancing the interests of consumers and food producers through a policy framework is complex and dynamic. Unfortunately, there is limited scholarly literature that explores farmers’ compliance with agri-food safety regulations in an African context, including Kenya. This thesis investigates farmers’ and agricultural industry insiders’ perceptions and attitudes about agri-food safety and agri-food safety regulations. It also examines farmers’ compliance with agri-food safety regulations in a major agricultural region in Kenya. These food safety regulations and laws are in response to the Kenyan Government’s aim to improve the quality and safety of agricultural products for local consumption and global trade by giving farmers increased responsibility for agri-food safety management. The study was informed by three theoretical frameworks: 1) the goal framing theory from the discipline of social psychology, 2) the rational choice theory, which is a cross-disciplinary framework, and 3) the routine activity theory, which is a criminological-based theory that focuses on understanding human deviant behaviour from a crime prevention perspective.</p> <p>A sequential mixed-method design approach was adopted and involved collecting both quantitative and qualitative data and separately analysing each set of data. For the quantitative phase of the study, 160 farmers were surveyed using a semi-structured questionnaire during face-to-face interviews. Descriptive and hierarchical regression analyses were employed to analyse the quantitative data. The qualitative phase of the study involved six focus group discussions with 54 farmers and 29 key stakeholders in the agri-food chain, and the resulting data were analysed using the thematic method. The findings from the qualitative data were used to triangulate and enhance the findings from the quantitative study.</p> <p>The survey results indicated that few farmers view agri-food safety as an agricultural challenge, especially among small-scale farmers. Both the survey results and focus group discussions also showed that farmers have low levels of awareness of some agri-food safety regulations. Furthermore, the two sets of data from the survey and focus group discussions revealed that farmers in the study area rarely comply with agri-food safety regulations. However, there were differences in perceptions between the farmers and the key agricultural insiders in relation to farmers’ compliance with agri-food safety regulations. The key informants tended to view farmers’ compliance levels as being higher than those indicated by the survey participants. Finally, both the farmer surveys and the key informant qualitative interviews revealed that farmers’ breaches of agrifood safety regulations are motivated by financial stress, pressure to conform to social norms, and the need to avoid feeling guilty for causing harm to another human being. Other factors found to influence farmers’ compliance with agri-food safety regulations were their lack of awareness of regulations and a lack of recognition of the legitimacy of government actions in the way regulations are designed and implemented.</p> <p>The findings enhance understanding of farmers’ agri-food safety practices and their compliance with agri-food safety regulations in a developing country context. Moreover, the study extends the goal framing theory to the agricultural regulatory compliance literature. Importantly, it shows that the goal framing theory is useful for understanding farmers’ compliance with agri-food safety regulations in a developing country. In addition, the findings of this study should inform the development of effective, socially responsive, and acceptable agricultural and food policies and programs, especially for farmers in developing countries. The study forms a sound reference point for future studies on agricultural regulatory compliance. </p>