Profit Efficiency Among Sweet Yellow Passion Fruit Farmers in Kenya

The horticulture industry in Kenya has been very successful in the last one and a half decades. This subsector has grown to become a major employer and foreign exchange earner. In 2014, fruits contributed Kshs. 51.5 billions accounting for 22% of the domestic value of horticultural produce. The sweet yellow passion fruit variety is gaining adoption in Mbeere South Sub-county due to its apparent adaptation to the hot arid conditions and a ready market. Efforts had been made to promote the production and marketing to boost smallholder farmer income by various passion fruits stakeholders. Despite the efforts, profit levels were considered to be dismal as some farmers were investing highly to the fruit agribusiness venture but ending up making losses due to high production costs. The causes of the varying profits had not been empirically established. The economic/profit efficiency level of the agro-enterprise was therefore unknown and further the use of agricultural credit on the sweet yellow passion fruit by smallholder farmers in Mbeere South was not known.