Journal of Agricultural Economics and Development Vol. 6(1), pp. 001-011, January 2017 Available online at http://academeresearchjournals.org/journal/jaed ISSN 2327-3151 ©2017 Academe Research Journals Full Length Research Paper Consumers’ preference attributes for indigenous chicken in Kenya Charles Ndenga 1 *, Eric K. Bett 1 , Lucy W. Kabuage 2 1 Department of Agribusiness Management and Trade, Kenyatta University, Kenya. 2 Department of Agricultural Resource Management, Kenyatta University, Kenya. Accepted 7 November, 2016 Indigenous chicken (Gallus domesticus) are an important source of livelihoods and food for majority of households in Kenya. Consumers appreciate Indigenous chicken(IC) more due to its nutritional value and health benefits. The Kenyan chicken market is dominated by indigenous chickens, an indication of consumer preferences. This is despite recent improvements by research institutions resulting to development of Improved Indigenous Chicken (IIC) which has higher productivity levels. Consumer preference assessment gives important information on acceptability of a commodity by consumers. The primary objective of this study, therefore, was to analyze consumer preference attributes for indigenous chickens in Makueni and Nairobi counties. Specifically, the study sought to; identify and rank attributes of indigenous chickens that influences choice and consumption and to; analyze the influence of IC attributes on price. A Cross-sectional survey research was used to obtain 200 respondents with the aid of semi-structured questionnaires. Hedonic pricing model in STATA 11.0 was fitted to estimate the influence of attributes on observed prices. Results indicated that consumers pay a premium of Ksh 30/kilogram for yellow skin and Ksh. 30 kg for low fat content live IC. Dressed IC with white meat colour received a price premium of Ksh. 43 kg while red meat colour received premium of Ksh. 62 kg. Based on the findings of the study, it is recommended that government supports breeding and improvement programs to ensure IC of preferred attributes are available and affordable to the farmers. This would enhance acceptability and utilization by consumers. Key words: Attributes, choice, hedonic pricing, indigenous chickens, observed prices. INTRODUCTION The demand for animal products in the world is projected to expand by the year 2020 due to increase in urbanization, human population and income growth which will create markets for animal products (Delgado et al., 1999), chicken products are likely to benefit from this prospect. In 2010 the total number of chickens in Kenya stood at 37.3 Million distributed as follows: - 84% indigenous, 5.7% broilers, 8.3% layers and 1.7% other birds (USAID, 2010). Indigenous chicken(IC) contributes to 71% of the total egg and poultry meat production and therefore, influencing significantly on the rural trade, welfare and food security of the smallholder farmers (Nyaga, 2007). The subsector also serves as a source of households’ income and employment (ASDS, 2010). Indigenous chickens (IC) provide a key source of proteins from meat for human diets. It is considered as an alternative to most red meat and is widely eaten across the globe including Kenya. In Kenya, consumers generally prefer indigenous chickens and pay premium prices compared to the other chickens due to the perception that IC tastes better, nutritious and perceived health benefits (USAID, 2010). However, productivity levels of IC are low characterized by low input use *Correspondence author. E-mail: charlesndenga@yahoo.com. Tel: 0725093929.