Adoption Of Circular Economy Practices And Performance Of Agricultural Value Chains In Kenya

Abstract

This research explored the adoption of circular economy practices within Agri-Value Chains in Kenya under varying external factors, a critical step towards enhancing sustainability, efficiency, and resilience in agriculture. The primary objectives were to assess the level of circular economy practices integration, identify barriers to its adoption, and evaluate its effect on Agri-Value Chain performance. The target population includes publicly listed agricultural firms, stakeholders such as farmers, agribusinesses, policymakers, and civil society organizations. The study adopted descriptive design to delve into the adoption of circular economy practices within Agri-Value Chains. The study targeted 438 respondents including 403 farming groups and 35 ministry and development partner key informants. A total of 209 respondents pre-determined using Yamanes formula were selected using stratified random sampling. Data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The relationship between variables was established using multiple linear equation modelling. The product development demonstrated a beta coefficient that was statistically significant. In light of these findings, it can be inferred that, assuming all other independent variables remain constant, enhancing product development will lead to an improvement in the performance of agricultural value chains in Kenya. The circular supplies exhibited a robust and statistically significant relationship with the efficacy of agricultural value chains in Kenya. Furthermore, circular supplies exhibited a significant beta coefficient. This led to the conclusion that enhanced circular supplies would correlate with an improvement in the performance of agricultural value chains in Kenya. The beta coefficient for product life extension was observed to be both positive and significant. This culminated in the conclusion that extending product life may enhance the performance of agricultural value chains in Kenya. The results suggest that the beta value associated with product recovery was not statistically significant. This study determined that variations in product recovery, whether improvement or decline, would not lead to any significant alteration in the performance of agricultural value chains in Kenya. Of the four variables—product development, circular supplies, product life extension, and product recovery—Product life extension exhibited the most profound influence on the performance of agricultural value chains in Kenya. This study indicates that agricultural firms in Kenya ought to prioritize the extension of their product lifespan, as this approach is anticipated to improve their profitability. The analysis revealed that product recovery exerted a minimal influence on the performance of agricultural value chains in Kenya. Considering these findings, this study advises agricultural firms in Kenya to exercise prudence in allocating substantial resources to product recovery, as such investments may yield limited returns. The results demonstrate that product development, circular supplies, product life extension, and product recovery constitute 69.1% of the performance metrics within agricultural value chains in Kenya. The residual 29.1% can be ascribed to additional variables that were not encompassed within the scope of this study. This indicates the imperative of pursuing additional research that integrates various variables to uncover further elements influencing the efficacy of agricultural value chains in Kenya.