Publication - Understanding the Scale of the Commercial Cooking Sector in Kenya: A Replicable Methodology for Estimating the number of food businesses nationally

►Add a New Publication
►See All Latest Publications

Title

Understanding the Scale of the Commercial Cooking Sector in Kenya: A Replicable Methodology for Estimating the number of food businesses nationally

Publisher

Modern Energy Cooking Services (MECS), Gamos Ltd

Author

Walter Kipruto, Jacob Fodio Todd, Richard Sieff & Nigel Scot

Published in

July 2026

Abstract

In many emerging economies, commercial cooking is among the most common business activities,

supporting the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of individuals. Commercial cooking organisations are broadly defined as businesses or individuals engaged in profit-led ventures that are both the site of food preparation and service; for instance, restaurants, cafés, and street food vendors. Yet, despite the sector’s economic importance, there is limited literature and data on the sector, and a lack of evidence on the size of the commercial cooking market, including on the informal sector likely to account for the majority of businesses. This data deficit has significant implications, potentially deterring investment and limiting opportunities to support livelihoods, enhance productivity, and

leverage the economic potential of this often overlooked but major part of the economy.

URL

link to the document

Admin:
No

PIE Grant (Grid Portal)?
No

No

• Cooking

• Other