Kenya's Pesticide Market: A Global Company Registration Overview

Kenya, often referred to as the ‘Eastern Gateway of Africa,’ is the third-largest economy in sub-Saharan Africa. It plays a crucial role in regional trade agreements and is a key member of both the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC). Additionally, Kenya has signed double taxation avoidance agreements with 18 countries. The U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) also grants Kenya zero-tariff access for its exports to the United States.

Despite the drought's impact on agricultural output, which led to a 1.6% decline in Kenya's agricultural gross value added, sugarcane and coffee production saw increases. In 2022, tea generated the highest export revenue for Kenya at $1.2 billion, followed by horticultural products at $1.12 billion, clothing exports at $315.94 million, and coffee exports at $272.6 million.

A pesticide registration certificate is a crucial entry pass for pesticide products to access the market. In Kenya, the pesticide registration system forms a foundational element of agricultural development. Pesticides are essential not only for enhancing agricultural productivity but also for ensuring food safety and quality.

Currently, Kenya has approved 2,179 pesticide registration certificates involving 491 companies. Of these, 2,045 are conventional pesticide products, representing 93.85%, while 134 are biological pesticide products, making up 6.15%. Chinese companies hold 1,113 of these certificates, accounting for 51.08%.

The 491 companies were categorized by their countries and regions, with the top nine being China, India, the United States, Kenya, Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and France, collectively accounting for 82.69%. Specifically, China leads with 212 companies, representing 43.17%; followed by India with 48 companies, accounting for 9.78%; and the United States with 37 companies, making up 7.54%.

From a company perspective, the total number of products registered by the four major companies in Kenya is less than 10%. Among these, Syngenta ranks second with about 3.58% of registrations, Bayer ranks third with 3.39%, Corteva ranks tenth with 1.97%, and BASF ranks sixteenth with 1.06%.

In terms of pesticide products, there are 1,937 registration certificates for conventional products such as fungicides, insecticides, herbicides, and miticides, including 28 seed treatment products registered as fungicides and insecticides. Among these categories, insecticides hold the largest share with 751 registration certificates, accounting for 38.77%. Fungicides follow with 718 certificates, making up 37.07%, while herbicides rank third with 448 certificates, representing 23.13%. Miticides rank fourth with 20 certificates, accounting for 1.03%.

Among the top 10 active ingredients in pesticides, there are a total of 512 registered products, representing 23.49% of the market. The rankings are as follows:

       1.    Abamectin leads with 95 products, accounting for 4.36%.

       2.    Imidacloprid follows with 93 products, making up 4.27%.

       3.    Acetamiprid is third with 70 products, representing 3.21%.

       4.    Chlorpyrifos is fourth with 43 products, totaling 1.97%.

       5.    Emamectin Benzoate is fifth with 40 products, accounting for 1.84%.

       6.    Thiamethoxam is sixth with 38 products, making up 1.74%.

       7.    Indoxacarb is seventh with 36 products, representing 1.65%.

       8.    Alpha-cypermethrin is eighth with 34 products, accounting for 1.56%.

       9.    Lambda-cypermethrin is ninth, also with 34 products, totaling 1.56%.

       10.  Acephate rounds out the top ten with 29 products, accounting for 1.33%.

The top 10 active ingredients in fungicides account for 599 registered products, representing 27.48% of the market. The rankings are as follows:

       1.    Mancozeb leads with 143 products, making up 6.56%.

       2.    Azoxystrobin is second with 87 products, representing 3.99%.

       3.    Cymoxanil is third with 69 products, totaling 3.17%.

       4.    Difenoconazole is fourth with 64 products, accounting for 2.94%.

       5.    Tebuconazole is fifth with 57 products, making up 2.62%.

       6.    Metalaxyl is sixth with 40 products, representing 1.84%.

       7.    Carbendazim is seventh with 37 products, accounting for 1.70%.

       8.    Copper oxychloride is also eighth with 37 products, totaling 1.70%.

       9.    Chlorothalonil is ninth with 34 products, representing 1.56%.

       10.  Dimethomorph rounds out the top ten with 31 products, accounting for 1.42%.

The top 10 active ingredients in herbicides account for 303 registered products, representing 13.90% of the market. The rankings are as follows:

      1.     Glyphosate leads with 57 products, making up 2.62%.

      2.     Glyphosate-isopropylammonium is second with 52 products, representing 2.39%.

      3.     2,4-D is third with 39 products, totaling 1.79%.

      4.     Atrazine is fourth with 36 products, accounting for 1.65%.

      5.     Fenoxaprop-p-ethyl is fifth with 25 products, representing 1.15%.

      6.     Glufosinate-ammonium is sixth, also with 25 products, making up 1.15%.

      7.     Bentazone is seventh with 19 products, totaling 0.87%.

      8.     Pendimethalin is eighth with 18 products, representing 0.83%.

      9.     Metolachlor is ninth with 16 products, accounting for 0.73%.

      10.   Metribuzin is tenth, also with 16 products, making up 0.73%.

Since the beginning of 2023, AgroPages has been diligently expanding its extensive database of global pesticide registrations, achieving significant milestones. Commencing this week, we will be unveiling detailed pesticide registration profiles for various countries on our official LinkedIn account and through our weekly newsletter, ensuring a continuous flow of up-to-date insights into the industry.

We encourage you to stay tuned for the latest and greatest insights into the pesticide market. For more details, please feel free to contact us or go to the "Directory" section of our website.