Ugali continues to be one of Kenya’s most affordable and filling staple foods, helping millions meet daily energy requirements. However, incorporating nutrient-rich foods such as eggs, milk, fish, fruits, and vegetables can significantly increase household food expenses.
A recent report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) alongside other UN agencies, titled The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026, sheds light on why balanced diets remain financially inaccessible for many Kenyans despite improvements in overall food security since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why Balanced Diets Cost More Than Staples
The FAO report highlights that while starchy staples like maize, rice, and wheat provide roughly half of the calories in a healthy diet, they only make up about one-sixth of its total cost. In contrast, animal-source foods, fruits, and vegetables constitute nearly 70% of the expense required for a nutritious diet.
For Kenyan families, this means that purchasing maize flour to prepare ugali for multiple meals is relatively inexpensive. However, the cost escalates steeply when adding vegetables like sukuma wiki or spinach, proteins such as eggs, fish, or meat, and dairy products necessary for a balanced diet.
Beyond Energy: The Need for Nutrient Diversity
Nutrition experts emphasize that while ugali provides essential calories, a healthy diet also requires proteins, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats found in diverse food groups. The FAO’s Healthy Diet Basket combines six food groups to meet these nutritional needs rather than relying solely on staples.
The report also explains why protein-rich foods are pricier: their production, transportation, and preservation demand more resources. Similarly, fresh fruits and vegetables have high costs due to their perishable nature and the need for efficient storage and logistics.
Factors Driving High Costs of Nutritious Foods
The expense of a balanced diet in Kenya is influenced significantly by post-farm activities including transportation, storage, refrigeration, wholesale, and retail. These logistical costs are especially high for fresh and perishable items.
The FAO recommends boosting agricultural productivity, improving rural infrastructure such as roads and cold-chain systems, enhancing transport efficiency, investing in agricultural research, and fostering better trade integration as key strategies to lower the cost of healthy foods.
Pathways to More Affordable Healthy Eating
According to the report, making nutritious diets more affordable requires government and food system interventions focused on reducing production and delivery costs of nutrient-rich foods, rather than just staples.
Additionally, selecting locally available, lower-cost fruits and vegetables can help reduce expenses. Ultimately, investments in infrastructure and productivity are crucial for enabling Kenyan households to access balanced, nutritious diets without prohibitive costs.
