The impacts of sugar cane growing on household food security in Bulamagi Sub-county Iganga district

Abstract

Sugarcane farming has a long history, dating back to between 1910 and 1920 (Mwanika et, al., 2021). Initially, sugarcane was produced at a smaller scale, primarily for the local market in Uganda. Gradually, sugarcane production transformed from the peasant to the commercial level, and by 1921, sugarcane farming had expanded from the central region to eastern Uganda, through large plantations operated by wealthy Indians (Ahluwalia 1995). The study involved an exploratory design and both quantitative and qualitative approaches considered to determine the state of affairs as it exists and is concerned with the gathering of facts rather than manipulation of variables. The villages visited were randomly selected and while there, a systematic approach was adopted moving from one household to the next without discrimination or selection. A sample of 150 respondents was established from two villages (Budhwege and Nawansinge villages) in Bukoyo Parish Bulamagi sub-county. Generally male adult were selected as respondents. The data from the field was coded, entered and cleaned in Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) in which both quantitative and qualitative methods of data analysis were applied More than half (54.7%) of the population in the sub-county grows sugarcanes while 45.3% do not grow sugarcanes From the results, it has been found out that with the introduction of sugarcane, land available for the production of food crops has declined especially for the sugarcane growers than the non-sugarcane growers. This implies that sugarcane growing households have limited access to food than the non-sugarcane growing households since much of their land was put under sugarcane production which makes them food insecure. In conclusion, sugarcane growing, although contributing to increased household income, does not necessarily increase food security among households and most of the households practicing commercial sugarcane growing were found to be food insecure