Examining the Impact of Cooperative Membership on Household Income: Insights from Bee Producers in Rural Kenya

In the contemporary agricultural landscape, cooperative societies have emerged as instrumental catalysts for modernization, facilitating specialized production, geographic clustering, and improved market integration. Although their potential to enhance self-sufficiency is acknowledged, the specific impact of cooperative membership on bee producers’ household income remains insufficiently examined. This study, therefore, investigates the determinants of cooperative participation and their implications for bee producers’ income. Using survey data from 201 rural farm households, our analysis employs an Endogenous Switching Regression (ESR) model to uncover significant determinants influencing farmers’ decisions to join cooperatives, including age, landholding size, market accessibility, village affiliation, beehive count, proximity to cooperatives, and the extent of cooperative involvement by neighbors. The results show that cooperative member households earn approximately 2% higher income than non-member households. Moreover, our analysis highlights a compelling pathway through which this effect is manifested: cooperative-affiliated households exhibit a staggering increase of over 50% in their market access compared to non-participating counterparts. This improvement represents a tangible advantage rather than a statistical artifact. Thus, the findings underscore the pivotal role of cooperatives in facilitating honey market access for smallholder bee farmers, contributing to household Income growth, poverty reduction, and the achievement of zero hunger.