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This study examines how income, household division of power and maternal decision-making ability influence dietary intake and child morbidity. A sample of 154 households with children between one and three years was drawn from six villages in Busia District, western Kenya. Information on household and maternal characteristics, morbidity, dietary intake and anthropometry was gathered between July and November 1988. Household headship was found to have no significant or direct influence on children's nutritional status. Total income was higher in female-headed households. While women in male-headed households had greater financial responsibility for household maintenance, female heads of household assumed more farming responsibilities but had higher remittances from husbands. A measure of maternal differentiation was generated by principal components analysis, constituted mainly by schooling, language ability, nutrition knowledge and information seeking behaviour. Differentiation had a strong impact in lowering morbidity and was a significant predictor of greater dietary diversity and weaning practices that supported better child nutrition and growth.

Food insecurity has remained pervasive for most Kenyan livelihoods despite the implementation of substantive interventions by the government and its development partners, since it gained independence in 1963. The inability to isolate distinct determinants of food insecurity for each livelihood group has led to interventions and solutions that have entrenched food insecurity rather than mitigate it. The key impediment to a livelihood-level analysis of food insecurity is the use of data and information collected at district-level administrative units, coupled with the absence of a robust analytical methodology. This study set out to identify determinants of food insecurity for three distinct livelihood groups in Kenya, namely the pastoral, agro-pastoral and marginal agricultural groups. The study also sought to empirically evaluate incremental impacts of identified determinants of food insecurity for each group. The outcomes were intended to inform the selection of particular indicators in order to target, monitor and identify important inter-relationships between variables for each livelihood group. Few studies have applied heterogeneous ordered logit regressions to livelihood-level data to evaluate food security determinants among livelihood groups and a comprehensive livelihood analysis of the determinants of food insecurity has not yet been undertaken in Kenya. Yet, Kenyan livelihoods are highly diverse, and livelihood characteristics transcend administrative boundaries. This study used a heterogeneous ordered logit to model determinants of food security in Kenya. The variables were: conflict, HIV/AIDS, rainfall, flooding, proximity to markets, migration patterns, food consumption sources, income contribution sources and own farm production. Results of significance tests and residual variability from the ordered logistic regression led to the identification of important determinants of food insecurity in each of the three livelihoods. The degree to which each of the variables was influential in accentuating food insecurity in each livelihood, was also evaluated. Determinants of food insecurity and their inter-relationships informed the selection of indicators for monitoring. Proximity to markets seemed to have a marked impact on food security in the pastoral, agropastoral and marginal agricultural livelihood groups. Conflict was influential in determining food insecurity, particularly for the pastoral and agro-pastoral livelihood groups. HIV/AIDS prevalence in the community was critical in determining food security status for the marginal agricultural and agro-pastoral livelihood groups. Rainfall was an important determinant of food insecurity in all the groups. Flooding had no significant impact on food insecurity. The results showed that an increase in the number of food sources improved food security in the pastoral, agro-pastoral and marginal agricultural livelihood groups. A diversity of income sources improved food security in the pastoral and agro-pastoral livelihood groups. The pastoral migration pattern seemed to have a substantial impact on food security especially in the pastoral and agro-pastoral livelihood groups. Own farm production was also influential in determining food security in both groups. The study outcome provides a basis for identification of important monitoring indicators including agro-climatic, trade and market processes, migration dynamics, income and food sources and the stability, settlement patterns, key livelihood and coping strategies in the three livelihood groups. The strong inter-relationships between variables suggest that multiple variables need to be monitored concurrently to address livelihood food insecurity in Kenya. The findings suggest that livelihood approaches are central to identifying determinants of food insecurity in Kenya. The outcomes of the study provide a basis for informing interventions intended to reverse food insecurity in Kenya for each distinct livelihood group. Further research could include an analysis of the impacts of seasonality, an in-depth analysis of the markets and their marked influence in affecting food security, and applications of similar methodologies to evaluate of the food insecurity of livelihood groups that were not covered in this study. Outcomes of this work are expected to provide a basis for formulating livelihood-specific interventions in Kenya. The results will provide a platform for further interrogation of important determinants of livelihood food insecurity by governments, researchers, and development partners. Aspects of the methodologies applied in this study can be replicated in adjacent countries with food security and livelihood characteristics similar to Kenya, such as Ethiopia and Somalia. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.

Peanuts contribute significantly to food security in western Kenya due to their high nutritional value and cash crop potential. However, the crop is highly susceptible to aflatoxin contamination. Yet little information is available on the extent of contamination in the region. This study explores the level and extent of contamination of peanuts by aflatoxins, Aspergillus section Flavi, Rhizopus and Penicillium spp. in western Kenya. A survey of 769 households was carried out in the Busia and Homa bay districts of Kenya. Information on peanut pre- and post-harvest practices was collected through person-to-person interviews. Aflatoxin levels of samples collected from each household were determined by indirect competitive ELISA method. Isolation of Aspergillus section Flavi, Penicillium and Rhizopus spp. was done on Modified Dichloran Rose Bengal (MDRB) agar, while identification of specific fungal species was done on Czapek yeast extract agar (CYA). Screening isolates of A. flavus and A. parasiticus for aflatoxin production was done in high sucrose yeast extract (YES) liquid medium, and the aflatoxin types identified on TLC plates, using analytical grades of aflatoxin B1, B2, G1 and G2 as reference standards. Common household preparation techniques (roasting, making peanut paste and boiling peanuts) were evaluated for effectiveness in reducing aflatoxin levels in peanuts. The boiling procedure was modified to test the effect of magadi (locally available salt used mainly to soften legumes, vegetables or maize while cooking), ammonium persulphate and sodium hypochlorite during soaking. Magadi, sodium bicarbonate and locally prepared ash was subsequently used to boil the nuts after soaking. Aflatoxin levels ranged from zero to 7525 ìg/kg. Most samples were safe to consume, based on the European Union and Kenya Bureau of Standards tolerance levels, with 63.7 per cent of all samples having undetectable levels, and only 7.54 per cent being contaminated based on KEBS standards. Peanuts from the Busia district, which has more of Lower Midland 1 (mean annual rainfall of 1600-1800 mm) and Lower Midland 2 (mean annual rainfall of 1300-1700 mm) agro-ecological zones had significantly (÷2=14.172; P=0.0002) higher levels of aflatoxin compared to the Homa bay district, that has more of the drier Lower Midland 3 agroecological zone (mean annual rainfall of 900-1500mm). Improved cultivars had significantly (÷2=9.748; P=0.0018) lower levels of aflatoxin compared to local cultivars. Over 60 per cent of all samples had A. flavus S-strain, A. flavus L-strain and A. niger. A. flavus S-strain was positively correlated with aflatoxin levels. As expected, grading of peanuts post-harvest significantly reduced the incidence of A. flavus S- and L-strains, while peanuts collected from farmers who belonged to producer marketing groups had a significantly lower incidence of A. flavus S- and L-strains, A. niger and Rhizopus spp. The incidence of A. flavus L-strain, A. niger and Rhizopus spp. was significantly higher in local landraces compared to the improved cultivars. Over 60 per cent of isolates produced Aflatoxin B1. Intermediate processes such as sorting and dehusking led to a significant decline in levels of aflatoxin. Soaking peanuts in water, magadi, NaOCl and ammonium persulphate significantly reduced aflatoxin levels by 27.7, 18.4, 18.3 and 1.6 per cent respectively; while boiling the peanuts in magadi, local ash, baking powder and water reduced aflatoxin levels by 43.8, 41.8, 28.9 and 11.7 per cent respectively. Using magadi during boiling increased the acceptability of the boiled peanuts while reducing the aflatoxin levels. The impact of aflatoxin levels in peanuts studied in this research is within safe limits except a few samples, and therefore aflatoxin contamination of peanuts at household level is not a serious threat. Contamination by aflatoxin and post-harvest fungi can be reduced by focusing on improved control strategies for wetter and more humid zones such as planting improved peanut cultivars and controlling pre-harvest pest damage. Conventional household peanut preparation techniques should be explored as possible aflatoxin management strategies in Kenya. The aflatoxin binding properties of locally available salts such as magadi and locally prepared ash should be further investigated. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.