Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya

Kiprono, Patricia J.; Kaiser, Jennifer; Wario, Hussein T.; Hounkpatin, Waliou Amoussa; Kaufmann, Brigitte A. Article — Published Version Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya Food Security Provided in Cooperation with: Springer Nature Suggested Citation: Kiprono, Patricia J.; Kaiser, Jennifer; Wario, Hussein T.; Hounkpatin, Waliou Amoussa; Kaufmann, Brigitte A. (2025) : Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya, Food Security, ISSN 1876-4525, Springer Netherlands, Dordrecht, Vol. 17, Iss. 4, pp. 883-904, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-025-01552-6 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/330601 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. 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If the documents have been made available under an Open Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Vol.:(0123456789) Food Security (2025) 17:883–904 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-025-01552-6 RESEARCH Navigating food environments forcomplementary feeding inthedrylands ofnorthern Kenya PatriciaJ.Kiprono1,2 · JenniferKaiser1· HusseinT.Wario3· WaliouAmoussaHounkpatin4· BrigitteA.Kaufmann1,5 Received: 2 April 2024 / Accepted: 10 May 2025 / Published online: 9 June 2025 © The Author(s) 2025 Abstract Despite numerous studies and aid programs, child malnutrition in African drylands remains a critical challenge for child growth and development. Although mothers are central to children’s nutritional well-being, their perspectives are rarely prioritized. We seek to understand mothers’ decision-making for feeding their children within the specific contexts of their personal food environments, including socioeconomic constraints and environmental conditions. Specifically, we analysed the influence of these constraints and conditions between locations and ethnic communities in Marsabit County, northern Kenya. We used a participatory approach for qualitative data collection to compare the extent to which women’s personal food environments influence child-food provision among Rendille (pastoral), Borana (agro-pastoral), and Burji (crop-farming) communities. In 18 focus group discussions conducted in 2021–2022, women caregivers in six groups in these three communities rated and discussed up to 35 foods according to accessibility, affordability, convenience, healthiness, and acceptance by children. Mothers' perspectives on food characteristics associated with personal food environment factors vary depending on their contextual conditions. The ratings of food items according to these factors differed between the pastoral and agropastoral communities. The concepts of the food environment show how various factors affect mothers' food choices and child nutrition. These factors include location, livelihood systems, seasonality, infrastructure, household conditions, and food cultures. Therefore, food environment framing provides better strategies to inform interventions that aim to promote healthy and sustainable diets to improve children’s nutrition and well-being. Keywords Child feeding· Food security· Mothers· Food choices· (agro-)pastoralists· Tropentag 2023 1 Introduction Malnutrition is a global health concern, particularly in dryland areas of sub-Saharan Africa where a high percentage of children are undernourished. Drylands are often economically marginalized, and large parts of the population depend on primary production, either rain-fed cropping or rangeland-based livestock production. Marsabit County in northern Kenya lies in drylands, which constitute 80% of the country’s total land area. Household food security directly impacts the availability and quality of food for children, often leading to child food poverty (UNICEF, 2024). However, food insecurity may vary among household members (Coleman-Jensen, 2020). For instance, disparities in food allocation within households can result in either children or adults being food insecure (Marinda, 2006). As defined by FAO, food security is achieved when individuals have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and preferences for an active and healthy life (FAO etal., 2020). It is a fundamental human right, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 2, which emphasizes zero hunger (United Nations, n.d.). Sub-Saharan Africa remains the least food-secure region globally (FAO etal., 2024), with an average food security * Patricia J. Kiprono [email protected]; [email protected] 1 German Institute forTropical andSubtropical Agriculture (DITSL), Witzenhausen, Germany 2 University ofKassel, Nordbahnhofstr. 1a, 37213Witzenhausen, Germany 3 Center forResearch andDevelopment inDrylands (CRDD), PO Box35-60500, Marsabit, Kenya 4 University ofAbomey-Calavi, 01 BP 526, Abomey-Calavi, Benin 5 University ofHohenheim, 70599Stuttgart, Germany 884 P.J.Kiprono et al. score of 47 based on the Global Food Security Index (GFSI), which is calculated using indicators of food security drivers, with 100 being the highest score. This makes subSaharan Africa the only region below the global average of 62 (Economist Impact group, 2022). Kenya’s weak score of 53, though above the regional average, highlights persistent vulnerabilities. The country’s weakest performance is in the affordability category (42), highlighting the high cost of food relative to household income and limited safety net coverage for vulnerable populations (Economist Impact Group, 2022). Such challenges have a direct impact on the food security pillars: availability, accessibility, utilization and stability (FAO etal., 2020) which in turn affect the complementary feeding of children. In the context of food insecurity, it is important to understand how caregivers make decisions about complementary feeding and their practices. While quantitative studies on complementary feeding practices and their determinants are dominant in sub-Saharan Africa (Abebe etal., 2019; Amunga etal., 2022; Herman etal., 2023; Pacific etal., 2020), they primarily focus on measurable factors such as dietary diversity and nutritional status. However, these studies often fail to address the underlying reasons and broader contextual influences shaping these practices. In contrast, qualitative studies shed light on the environmental and socio-cultural factors influencing complementary feeding practices including but not limited to social support, autonomy, decision-making (Ickes etal., 2017), financial support (Ahishakiye etal., 2019), physical environment, and cultural food traditions (Duong etal., 2023). Despite their potential to provide deeper insights, qualitative studies remain limited in this topic and region. Understanding complementary feeding practices is particularly relevant in the drylands, where malnutrition rates are high; and inadequate dietary intake is one of the immediate causes of malnutrition (Young, 2020). Poor dietary intake has been linked to women's inadequate knowledge and improper practices. Therefore, governmental and nongovernmental organizations have implemented nutrition education programs to improve child nutrition. Studies have shown that nutrition education can improve knowledge and, in some cases, practices and nutritional status outcomes (Muluye etal., 2020; Saaka etal., 2021; Sharma etal., 2020). Success has been observed when considering different factors and sectors (Mulwa etal., 2023). To design more appropriate interventions, it is crucial to comprehend the decision-making process and constraints faced by women when feeding their children. Food decision-making is a complex process influenced by sociocultural, economic, and environmental factors (Conteno, 2011; Enriquez & Archila-Godinez, 2022; Larson & Story, 2009). Mothers are considered primary caregivers of children and are often held responsible for childcare and nutrition decisions (Muraya etal., 2017). Specifically, they decide what foods to give, when, where, and how to feed them (Mulville etal., 2022). These decisions are influenced by several factors including the physical and behavioural cues from the child (Blake etal., 2007; Hackett etal., 2015), societal norms of their ethnic communities, and respective food preferences (Reynolds etal., 2021), and household characteristics including their socio-economic status, size, composition and meal sharing customs (Ahishakiye etal., 2019; Monterrosa etal., 2012; Reynolds etal., 2021). Additionally, mother’s knowledge, self-efficacy, and confidence in feeding their children (Herman etal., 2023) play a critical role in decision-making. Support from the family members and community can offer encouragement (Aber etal., 2018; Jongenelis & Budden, 2023; Ukoji & Fayehun, 2023), as well as informational support received from health workers, family, peers, and marketers about child foods and feeding (Boak etal., 2016; Pineros-Leano etal., 2019). Moreover, women’s perceptions and evaluations of food items strongly influence their decisions. These factors include costs, how easily they can obtain particular food from the market, and ease and time-saving in food preparation (Berhane etal., 2018; Boak etal., 2016). They also consider the consistency and taste of food (Hackett etal., 2015; Monterrosa etal., 2012) and its healthiness, which are related to its nutritional benefits, food safety, and quality (Berhane etal., 2018; Waters etal., 2018). Understanding mothers’ food decision-making is a key factor in explaining practices for feeding children as well as the challenges faced hindering ideal nutritional outcomes and possible solutions to overcome these challenges. To better understand food choices, the concept of food environment has recently been introduced (Blake etal., 2021; Turner etal., 2020). The food environment refers to the physical, economic, political, and socio-cultural contexts at the micro and macro levels, where the consumer interacts with the wider food system and makes decisions about what foods they will source, purchase, prepare, and consume (Downs etal., 2020; Turner etal., 2018). It is separated into external and personal food environments. Personal food environment factors influencing decisions about what foods to consume or to feed a child include accessibility, affordability, convenience, and desirability; the last refers to preferences, acceptability, tastes, and desires towards the food sources and products (Turner etal., 2018). Food security is influenced by both food environments and social capital (Choi etal., 2022; Paul etal., 2019). Several studies have been conducted in the Global North to understand individuals’ food environments, especially those related to obesity (Li etal., 2015; Penney etal., 2014). In sub-Saharan Africa, however, few studies related to food environments have been conducted (Auma etal., 2020; Dake etal., 2016; Fernandes etal., 2017) and very few related to 885 Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya feeding and nutrition in young children (Pelto, 2015; Reynolds etal., 2021; Turner etal., 2020; Zobrist etal., 2018). Further research on food environments in Africa is needed to improve the health of the population (Laar etal., 2022). Using the concept of personal food environment, Berhane etal., (2018) demonstrated how factors such as convenience, children’s preferences, food safety, and cultural aspects influence urban mothers’ decision-making in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A study in Senegal showed mothers’ evaluation of food items related to their personal food environment where soft and sweet foods were rated as highly accepted; vegetables, fruits, and eggs were rated as healthy; and most foods were not considered convenient, but the reasons for the ratings were not explained (Zobrist etal., 2018). Food environments are context-specific and differ according to personal factors. Therefore, food environments can differ among people living in the same geographical location. Resource-poor settings, such as drylands in sub-Saharan Africa, face the challenge of a constrained food environment, thus limiting food choices. In Kenya, mothers’ perceptions of the importance of personal food environment factors were compared between women living in Marsabit and other dryland and arid areas in the Kenya Focused Ethnographic Studies (Pelto etal., 2013; Thuita etal., 2019). However, these studies focused on a single pastoral ethnic community in North Horr sub-county, Marsabit County, among other communities and regions in Kenya. Our study builds on this foundation by examining variations in food environments among three ethnic communities (Rendille, Borana, and Burji) living in different locations in Marsabit County (Saku and Laisamis sub-countieslocated in the highlands and lowlands respectively). This approach allows for a deeper understanding of how food environments vary within similar geographic contexts, considering the influence of location, ethnicity, and source of livelihood. In this comparative study, we used a participatory methodology to understand mothers’ decision-making regarding child foods and feeding within the specific contexts of their personal food environments, including socioeconomic constraints and environmental conditions. Specifically, we analysed the influence of these constraints and conditions between locations and ethnic communities in Marsabit County, northern Kenya. We compared women’s perceptions and their personal food environments in Rendille (pastoral), Borana (agro-pastoral), and Burji (crop-farming) communities. The specific objectives were to: (i) elicit mothers’ perceptions of factors belonging to their personal food environments and identify differences in food environments even in the seemingly same dryland context; and (ii) understand mothers’ characterization of common child-food items against their personal food environment factors. We thereby address the gap in existing literature where most studies have used quantitative measures of food environment and complementary feeding factors, our study uses a qualitative approach to provide deeper insights into the contextual factors and their interconnections. It highlights the environmental and socio-cultural factors that shape maternal decisionmaking on complementary feeding (conceptual framework in Fig.1). 2 Methods 2.1 Study area Marsabit County is an arid to semi-arid area with different agro-ecological zones. The average annual rainfall is between 200 and 1000 mm, making it one of the driest counties in Kenya. The region experiences two rainfall seasons, long rains between April and June, and short rains between October and December, with agricultural production primarily dependent on the long rains. It is inhabited by various ethnic communities such as Borana, Gabra, Rendille, and Burji. The different sources of livelihood in the county include pastoralism (81%), agro-pastoralism (16%), and others, such as formal employment, casual labour, and trading (3%) (Munene, 2019). The study was conducted in two subcounties: Laisamis and Saku. The Laisamis lowlands, 300 m above sea level, are arid with an average annual rainfall of 128 mm. The area around the small towns of Ngurunit and Korr (referred to in this paper as the Ngurunit-Korr study area) is inhabited by the Rendille community, pastoralists who raise their livestock in mobile systems. They keep their livestock close to their villages (manyattas) during the wet season when pasture and water are readily available; however, during dry seasons, they are taken to satellite camps and fora for better pasture and water. Men mostly move with the livestock during these times, leaving the rest of the household back in the village, but in some cases, the whole family relocates (FAO, 2020; Stites, 2021). Ngurunit-Korr in Laisamis is situated far from the main road and even further from Marsabit town, the County’s capital. Saku is located on the highlands at 1707 m above sea level, hence receiving higher rainfall with an annual average of 800 mm. It is inhabited by the Borana agro-pastoralists and Burji crop farmers, communities involved in this study (Pelto, 2015). Marsabit town, which is part of Saku, has a well-developed infrastructure, hence better access to water, markets, electricity, and other amenities, compared to the lowlands. Therefore, these two sub-counties are suitable for comparison due to their differing contexts despite their similar geographical locations. The contrasting conditions of these two locations are shown in Fig.2. 886 P.J.Kiprono et al. Marsabit County along other Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASAL) in Kenya faced one of the worst droughts in the recent decades from 2021–2023 due to five consecutive failed rainy seasons. As of February 2022, 20% of the ASAL populations were experiencing acute food insecurity, classified as phase 3crisis, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase (IPC) classification. Marsabit County was particularly affected with 50% of its population being acutely food insecure (phase 3) (IPC, 2022). The crisis was caused by multiple shocks in addition to the prolonged drought, such as local conflicts and effects of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions (Alulu etal., 2024; IPC, 2021, 2022). These shocks impacted negatively on the availability, accessibility, and utilization of foods by the population. The consequences for food security were severe, as during the prolonged drought, livestock, a primary livelihood source, suffered from poor body conditions, low selling prices, high mortality rates, and reduced milk production. This led to diminished household incomes, hence reduced purchasing power, while prices of staple foods and milk increased. These economic and environmental challenges affected the dietary intake of children and their nutritional status with high rates of malnutrition being recorded in the area (IPC, 2021, 2022). As of July 2022, 19.6% of children under the age of 5years in Marsabit County were acutely malnourished, 30.5% were underweight, and 23.8% were stunted. In Saku, 10.6% were acutely malnourished, 19.6% were underweight, and 19% were stunted. The rates were higher in Laisamis where 30.3% were acutely malnourished, 47.1% underweight, and 31.2% stunted(Munene, 2023). Fig. 1 Conceptual Framework for understanding mothers'decision making in food choices for child feeding within the food environment 887 Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya 2.2 Study design This study was part of a larger collaborative project, ‘Enhancing women’s agency in navigating changing food environments to improve child nutrition in African drylands’ (NaviNut), which used a transdisciplinary approach to emphasize the integration of knowledge from different disciplines and societal stakeholders. The research team on the ground consisted of students and members from the local areas both men and women. They made exploratory field visits (January–April 2021) to introduce the overall project idea to the different societal actors (mothers, other caregivers, and staff from local government and nongovernmental organizations), to discover their particular interests, to form a consultative group with representatives from different societal actors, and to conduct various activities to build trustful relationships. Building trustful relationships is essential in participatory research as it creates a supportive environment in which mothers feel free to share their perspectives. Recognising and valuing them as key holders of local knowledge about child care and Pictures going across Patricia Kiprono (1,4a), Diba Tari (2), Lilli Scheiterle (3), Sulekha Abdulkadir (4b,6). Raphael Gudere (5) Fig. 2 Contrasting conditions between the two study site locations of Ngurunit-Korr and Saku 888 P.J.Kiprono et al. nutrition fosters mutual respect and facilitates meaningful dialogue and information sharing. To anchor the collaboration with mothers, the researchers surveyed existing women’s groups as potential research partners from each of the two study locations, because we wanted to institutionalise the collaboration with the societal actors throughout the project duration. These women’s groups, with 10–60 members each, have different purposes, such as promoting their food and culture, table banking (local saving and credit), or conducting financial investments together as self-help groups. Overall 9 women’s groups were selected using purposive sampling to ensure representation from the different locations (Saku and Laisamis) and the three ethnic communities (Borana, Burji, and Rendille). The inclusion criteria were; women groups consisting of mothers and caregivers (e.g., grandmothers) of mixed ages both young and older women with children aged between 6 and 60 months living in their household, living in rural, peri-urban, or urban areas. In Laisamis, groups were classified as peri-urban when situated in close proximity to the markets and other amenities but overall the geographical location is considered rural. About 10–12 members from each group took part in the group discussions. These were members who were interested in NaviNut and lived close to each other. The inclusion of women's groups with different characteristics aimed to include a wide range of viewpoints and insights from different carers. This diversity was crucial in fostering collaborative learning both within and between groups, which is a fundamental aspect of transdisciplinary approaches and was emphasised in subsequent stages of the collaborative research (Kiprono etal., 2024). Women’s groups are very common in Marsabit county (Arasio etal., 2019), with both registered and informal groups existing. Membership provides several benefits, including access to pooled economic resources, opportunities to take loans, and mutual support due to strong social cohesion (Charity, 2014). This support often empowers women, enhancing their decision-making abilities and increasing their autonomy (Kenyatta, 2023). As a result, women who are organised in groups may have certain advantages over those who are not members. However, given that the majority of women in the region belong to such groups, the sample still reflects a representative of the wider population. Nevertheless, variations were observed within the groups, such as differences in wealth, education, and marital status, and these differences mirror those observed in the population as a whole. 2.3 Data collection andanalysis Data were collected using qualitative methods over 10 months between September 2021 and July 2022. There was close collaboration with the local research assistants who understood the language and context. All participants provided informed consent prior to discussions. With the respondents’ permission, discussions were audio-recorded. The step-wise procedure to data collection is summarised in Table1. A total of 18 focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with the 6 women’s groups (steps 1 to 3), plus 9 FGDs with 9 women’s groups for the preliminary step. The researchers developed discussion guides for each step and used interactive techniques to understand mothers'criteria for choosing foods for their children. Initially, free-listing exercises were conducted to identify the foods used in child feeding in the study area. Mothers in Saku listed 70 foods, while women in the Ngurunit-Korr area listed only 35; reflecting the limited access to diverse foods in the latter area. The researchers considered foods that were mentioned repeatedly across the groups to be common child foods: 35 of the 70 foods in Saku and 25 of the 35 foods among the Rendille in the Ngurunit-Korr area. The foods were either single foods, such as beans, or combined dishes, such as fiqe, which is a mixture of maize flour, wheat flour or barley, beans, moringa, and cooking oil or ghee. Pictorial food cards, showing a full picture of each food on a paper card, were printed and used in the subsequent rating exercises. The first step was to ask mothers what factors they considered when making food choices for their children. Their answers were consistent with the personal food environment factors of accessibility, affordability, convenience, healthiness, and child acceptance, with the last two falling under desirability. The researchers shared this correspondence with the women so that they could understand that their perspectives were consistent with the literature and that the personal food environment factors could then be used in subsequent activities. The women then shared with the researchers the contextual meaning of these factors and their importance in children's food choices. This process revealed the local meanings of the personal food environment factors and how they might differ between mothers living in different locations in the drylands. In the second step, the mothers characterised the common foods by rating them one by one using a participatory pile-sorting technique. The mothers rated each food item on a scale of 1–5 (5 being most favourable and 1 being least favourable) across all five personal food environment factors. The participatory process entailed group discussions to reach a consensus on each rating. Finally, the women gave detailed explanations of their ratings, providing insights into the reasons for their ratings and highlighting contextual factors that influenced their decisions. Audio recordings from the interviews and discussions were translated and transcribed from the local languages into English. The first and second co-authors coded the qualitative data using MAXQDA, and the coding was reviewed by the other coauthors. The first two co-authors then conducted content analysis 889 Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya (Maxwell, 2012). First, they read all 19 transcripts to gain an overview of the information. They identified codes from the discussion guides and literature and noted those that are most useful for content analysis, such as market access, time required for food preparation, and food preferences. Each of the first two co-authors read the same four transcripts in detail using pre-identified codes as described above and new codes that emerged in the transcripts. They compared how they coded these transcripts and created a list of new codes. The other co-authors reviewed and fine-tuned the list and created a ‘final’ list of selected codes. The ratings for each food item done by the six women groups were entered into an Excel spreadsheet and a descriptive analysis was carried out based on the calculated means and medians. There was little or no difference between the rural and peri-urban groups, hence the ratings were combined for each ethnic group. As the Borana and Burji communities had many similarities in their rankings, their results were grouped for the Saku location and compared with Ngurunit-Korr location, inhabited by the Rendille community. 3 Results The results of this study provide insights into the decisionmaking processes of (agro)-pastoral women from the drylands of Marsabit County, northern Kenya. Drawing on participatory focus group discussions and food rating exercises, the findings highlight the significance of the personal food environment factors (accessibility, affordability, convenience, healthiness, and child acceptance) by exploring what these factors mean to the women, and how they influence their food choices. The results also detail how women living in different locations characterise foods based on these factors. The findings reveal both similarities and differences in perceptions across ethnic groups and locations, reflecting variations in personal food environments influenced by factors such as climate (e.g. drought), environmental and socio-economic conditions, and cultural practices. 3.1 Characteristics ofthesample The participants comprised 61 women from six different women’s groups, with ages ranging from 19 to 84 years. All participants were caregivers of children under the age of 5years, the majority (77%) being mothers, while the rest were grandmothers. Most women had not received any formal education (67%), while a quarter (25%) had reached or completed upper primary education. The median number of children per household was 5, ranging from 1 to 10. The median age of the youngest child, all of whom were over 6months and under 5years, was 24 months. Additional Table 1 Step-wise data collection procedure Preliminary step: Free listing exercise (9 groups, 9 FGD sessions) The data collection began with a free-listing exercise during focus group discussion (FGD) sessions. Women from nine groups participated in this exercise to list various foods given to children in the region, categorized by the child’s age or developmental milestones - Saku groups identified up to 70 foods - Laisamis (Ngurunit-Korr) groups identified up to 35 foods - Common foods identified by both regions were selected for subsequent exercises: 35 foods from Saku and 25 foods from Ngurunit-Korr - Food cards were printed for all common foods Step 1: Understanding and defining factors shaping child food choices 6 groups; 6 FGD sessions Step 1 a: Identifying factors influencing child food choices - 6 FGDs were conducted in which women shared their perspectives on the factors they consider when choosing foods for their children. The initial question to the discussion was “What factors do you consider/take in to account when making decisions on what foods you will feed your child?” - Mothers'criteria matched personal food environment factors (Turner etal., 2018) including accessibility, affordability, convenience, healthiness, and child acceptance, the last falling under desirability. This conformity with the personal food environment factors was shared with participants for validation and further discussion Step 1b: Defining the personal food environment factors - To understand the contextual meaning of each factor, women were asked to explain what accessibility, affordability, convenience, healthiness, and acceptance mean to them and their importance in child food choices. Explanations were sought for each factor separately Step 2: Characterization of food items against personal food environment factors: (6 groups, 12 rating & discussion sessions) Step 2a: Rating exercise - Women engaged in a participatory evaluation process to assess food items based on the identified factors - The rating process was structured using the Likert scale provided by the researchers 1–5 with 1 being least favorable and 5 being most favorable. The women conducted discussions amongst themselves and agreed on the final placements of the food items on the scales. The pile sorting technique was used in the rating exercise Step 2b: Explaining the ratings - Women gave detailed reasoning behind their ratings for each factor. Participants shared their thoughts on why specific foods were rated as 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 in terms of accessibility, affordability, convenience, healthiness, and child acceptance. Their presentations were often followed by comments and discussions from other members which led to in-depth explanations 890 P.J.Kiprono et al. socio-demographic details are shown in \* MERGEFORMAT Table2. 3.2 Meaning offactors anddifferences inpersonal food environments ofwomen living inlowlands andhighlands Following the food environment framework, this section examines how women in Marsabit County perceive and interpret the personal food environment factors in their context. 3.2.1 Availability andaccessibility Rendille women participating in the research described the availability and accessibility (Heellin or Liwan in Rendille) of food for children as strongly affected by seasonality, particularly concerning the availability of milk from livestock as a core complementary food for children. During the rainy season, lactating animals are kept near their homestead and milk is often available adlibitum. During the dry season, most animals are kept in satellite camps, which limits access to milk in homesteads. A few lactating animals are usually kept near homesteads, but in times of extreme forage scarcity, no animals are left there. “When it’s wet season when livestock is at home, when sheep and goats are at home because camels don’t stay at home we take a gourd, smoke it and milk some goats and give the milk to the children, during wet season we don’t have problem with planning and feeding of the children, you are not worried what to give to the child because milk is available.” (Rendille Mother, FGD). The Rendille buy all other food in shops; the accessibility of which depends on the distance of the homestead from small centres or towns coupled with their financial situation. Suppliers bring food to the shops once a week or every two weeks, sometimes also close to the villages, or sell it from their vehicles on the roadsides. In the Rendille settlements, households have access to small mobile shops (women mainly sell cereals from their homes, which they source from the towns). Bigger shops with more foods such as fresh vegetables and fruits are only found in the town centres (Ngurunit and Korr). The accessibility of food Table 2 Socio-demographic characteristics of the study populations Total (n = 61) Ngurunit-Korr (Rendille) (n = 20) Saku (Burji and Borana) (n = 41) Child's characteristics Median age in months [min,max] 24.0 [8.00, 60.0] 24.0 [8.00, 60.0] 24.0 [8.00, 59.0] Mother's/ Caregiver's characteristics Median age in years [min, max] 36.0 [19.0, 84.0] 39.0 [23.0, 84.0] 35 [19.0, 72.0] Median number of children [min, max] 5.00 [1.00, 10.0] 6.00 [1.00, 10.0] 5.00 [2.00, 10.0] Marital status, n (%): Single 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) Married 53 (87%) 19 (95%) 34 (83%) Separated 1 (2%) 0 (0%) 1 (2%) Divorced 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) Widowed 7 (11%) 1 (5%) 6 (15%) Have co-wives, n (%) 11 (18%) 9 (45%) 2 (5%) Formal education level, n (%): None 41 (67.0%) 19 (95%) 22 (54%) Lower Primary 3 (5%) 0 (0%) 3 (7%) Primary 15 (25%) 1 (5%) 14 (34%) Secondary 1 (2%) 0 (0%) 14 (34%) Tertiary 1 (2%) 0 (0%) 1 (2%) Main income sources, n (%): Livestock 21 (34%) 20 (100%) 1 (2%) Crop farming 6 (10%) 0 (0%) 6 (15%) Formal employment 1 (2%) 0 (0%) 1 (2%) Casual worker 20 (33%) 0 (0%) 20 (49%) Self-employed 11 (18%) 0 (0%) 11 (27%) 897 Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya foods. Rendille women rated eggs low because they did not traditionally eat eggs and were now trying to include them in their children’s diets. Eggs have also been shown not to be an easily accepted food in other parts of Marsabit County (Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and USAID Nawiri, 2021; FAO, 2020; Pelto, 2015) and in other parts of Kenya where it is seen as a source of income (Kimiywe etal., 2022). However, our study showed a gradual increase in the use of eggs in children’s diet. Foods that are culturally acceptable will influence mothers'choices and, therefore, children's acceptance (Erasmus etal., 2022). In addition to responding to their children’s preferences, women also consider the needs of other household members when making choices (Flax etal., 2021; Monterrosa etal., 2012; Pineros-Leano etal., 2019; Wanjohi etal., 2023). This is particularly relevant when children start to eat family foods from the age of 2–3 years. Women in the different locations in Marsabit County prepared similar foods for children such as porridge, but with variations in preparation, ingredients, and additives. These differences determine the texture and taste of the food. Women in the three communities modified the food to increase acceptance by using additives or serving it in combination with other foods to make it tastier and adding other foods to improve texture. Most indigenous vegetables, such as moringa and amaranths, have a bitter taste, and are not easily consumed by all populations, especially children (Gewa etal., 2019). Moringa was therefore added to other foods in a mixed dish, such as fiqe to mask its bitterness. The texture of the food changes as the child grows, starting with liquids, soft foods, less soft foods, and some chunks for integration into family foods. Therefore, a particular food texture can also determine the avoidance (Duong etal., 2023) or complete elimination of a certain food from a small child’s diet (de Bruyn etal., 2021). Fiqe in particular was considered a dry and tough food, but ghee was added to make it soft and palatable for the child. Food choice is also influenced by the social environment (Wanjohi etal., 2023) where women learn about different foods and how to prepare them from their peers through interaction and cultural exchange (Pineros-Leano etal., 2019). This was evident among the different ethnic groups in Marsabit County, where in the past, some foods that were consumed predominantly by a specific ethnic group are now being consumed by other groups. For example, moringa is known to be a Burji food, and Borana living in the same area have now learnt to consume this vegetable. Continuous learning and modification can be observed and built upon to improve children’s feeding and nutrition. 4.5 Healthiness Healthiness was defined in terms of the health outcomes of the child. The ingredients and recipes of a food item were key factors in determining the healthiness of a dish. Strategies to enhance healthiness include enriching dishes with other food items such as milk or combining them with healthier foods. Agro-pastoral women in West Pokot (Kimiywe etal., 2022) and Marsabit County (Pelto etal., 2013) have also been shown to enrich their foods such as porridge with milk but their modification strategies are limited (Kimiywe etal., 2022). Women in both locations indicated that, a child needs to be given a variety of foods for a healthy diet and that monotony should be avoided. Thus, women are aware that the healthiness of single food items is not of paramount importance but rather that dietary diversity matters, which was also observed by other women in Kenya and Uganda (Mutuku etal., 2020; Nabuuma etal., 2021). Observing hygiene when handling foods promotes the prevention of illnesses and thus protects children's health and nutritional status (Kimiywe etal., 2022; Nordhagen etal., 2022). Women in Marsabit and Isiolo counties also highlighted the importance of hygiene in child feeding practices. They expressed reluctance to feed fermented milk or preserved meat to younger children, fearing that these foods cause health problems such as diarrhoea. As a result, such foods were often reserved for adults and older children to minimise perceived health risks (Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and USAID Nawiri, 2021). Women in all three communities observed the outcome of certain foods in their children in terms of growth, strength, and immunity to illness. This was also reported by a study targeting women in Isiolo and Marsabit counties (Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and USAID Nawiri, 2021). For example, moringa was associated with boosting immunity, and milk was associated with promoting growth. Women consider the health of their children when making decisions about which foods to offer (Farris etal., 2020; Flax etal., 2021; Pineros-Leano etal., 2019) and feel reassured when they have healthy children (Spence etal., 2016). This shows the women’s inherent interest in providing their children with good nutrition. Women also observe their children’s behavioural and physical changes in relation to food items over time (Erasmus etal., 2022). Mothers'observations of their children's health and dietary habits highlight the critical role of nutrient utilisation in promoting growth and nutritional status. This knowledge can be used in efforts to improve child nutrition through the use of locally available foods. While their knowledge of the effects of foods on children is based on their own experiences or that of their peers, their knowledge of the nutrients in foods is likely to have been gained through the health and nutrition education sessions provided by community health workers from the Kenyan Ministry of Health in local clinics and communities. 898 P.J.Kiprono et al. 4.6 Linking accessibility toother personal food environment factors: affordability, convenience, healthiness andchild acceptance Accessibility influences other factors such as affordability, convenience, acceptance by children, and healthiness. Affordability was closely linked to accessibility, as foods that were accessible in the homesteads and from neighbours were most affordable. Women also considered the convenience of a food item depending on its source: if they had it in their household or could get it from their farm or a nearby market. Ease of access (proximity) affects the time a mother will take to access food and prepare it (Duong etal., 2023; Kimiywe etal., 2022). The results of this study show that differences in food accessibility shape children’s food preferences. Rendille children have a low acceptance to most fruits due to their limited exposure because fruits are usually not accessible due to the lack of nearby markets and their high perishability. Although cow’s milk was not easily accessible to Burji and Rendille, the women rated it as highly accepted by their children. However, the most preferred milk among the Rendille was camel milk and cow milk among the Borana, reflecting the main livestock species kept by these respective groups and, thus, the type of milk that is more accessible. The influence of food accessibility on children’s food acceptance was also demonstrated in a Senegalese study showing differences between children living in rural and peri-urban areas (Zobrist etal., 2018). Similarly, accessibility influences the perceived health of food. For example, Rendille women rated all fruits as less healthy, whereas Borana and Burji women rated them as the healthiest. These fruits were not accessible in the arid lowlands, and some women were even unaware of some of the fruits. Among the four foods classified as healthy by all communities, the pastoralist community (Rendille) had access to only porridge. Hence, while Rendille women also desired to purchase foods known to be healthy, their poor access to these foods limited their ability to obtain them. Women’s characterization of food items compared to their personal food environment factors shows high consistency within one location and differs markedly between locations. In Saku, the women gave similar ratings to the foods in terms of affordability (79% of all foods), acceptance by children (82%), health and convenience (86%), and accessibility (89%). This reflects the similarities in the contextual conditions between the groups. Similar ratings revealed consistency in the perception and knowledge of women within a specific ethnic group in the same location. A recent study conducted by Adongo, Matofari, & Mbuthia (2024) in Marsabit, found differences in dietary diversity due to many factors including distance to the market with the highest consumption of meat recorded in Bubisa, and the highest consumption of vegetables and fruits in Marsabit Central. This also shows the differences between locations in Marsabit County. The differences between Saku and Laisamis reveal how varied the food environments are despite being in the same county, which many mistakenly consider as the same kind of dryland area. 4.7 Strengths andlimitations ofthestudy The transdisciplinary approach of the project allowed researchers and societal actors to collaborate at eye-level. The participatory and open interview methods used gave mothers the opportunity to freely share their perspectives and experiences with confidence and authenticity. The study was conducted among a marginalised population whose perceptions, interests and knowledge are usually given limited attention. Within the overall four-year collaboration with the women’s groups in the NaviNut project, the mothers gained more influence over the research activities, positioning them as co-researchers. The inclusion of women’s groups from different locations and ethnic groups, and the diversity within the groups, in terms of age and caregiving experience, enhanced the findings by incorporating varied viewpoints. It is important that we also share some of the limitations of the study and how we overcame some of the challenges. In transdisciplinary research, it is good practice to institutionalise collaboration with societal actors, which resulted in a relatively small number of sampled groups. The use of purposive sampling, a non-probability technique, limits generalisability. While this approach facilitated multiple interactions and in-depth discussions, a larger sample size and individual interviews would have provided opportunities to compare ratings taking into account individual and household characteristics. Although many women in the area belong to groups, working exclusively with group members may have introduced bias by not including women who do not belong to groups (possibly the most marginalised). However, the consistency observed in the results within a location, coupled with the marked differences between locations, suggests that the findings provide a valid representation of mothers'perspectives as influenced by their contextual conditions. As contextual conditions influence food environments and caregiver food choices, further research should be conducted to compare different ASAL regions in Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa, which may reveal additional variations in food environments and maternal decision making. The study was conducted during a severe drought, the effects of which were even more severe in the lowlands of Laisamis. These extreme conditions may have influenced 899 Navigating food environments for complementary feeding in the drylands of northern Kenya participants’ perspectives, despite efforts to focus discussions on their usual practices. It will be important to conduct further research that includes seasonal analysis, which would provide insights into how the situation changes over time, reflecting the variability of food security challenges. Next to challenges typical for remote areas, there were severe instances of local conflicts and insecurity in the region during the study periods, which occasionally disrupted the research process. Working with women's schedules and availability proved essential to maintaining their motivation and ensure consistent attendance at sessions. Despite these challenges, the data collected provided rich, context-specific insights into maternal decision-making and food choices in resource-constrained environments such as the drylands of northern Kenya. The findings therefore provide a basis for designing context-specific interventions to improve food security and child nutrition in similar settings. 5 Conclusion Mothers’ decision-making regarding complementary feeding is highly influenced by the respective local context comprising climatic, ecological, socio-economic, and cultural conditions that shape the respective food environments of (agro) pastoral households. Significant variations exist between ethnic groups and locations within Marsabit County, leading to notable differences in mothers’ evaluation of food items and dishes across the factorsaccessibility, affordability, convenience, healthiness, and child acceptance. Women’s characterization of food items also revealed their local knowledge and perceptions. For instance, when explaining which foods they consider healthy and linking them to observed health outcomes in their children. These evaluations were shaped by their daily experiences, reflecting living conditions such as access to water and firewood, the distances required to obtain these resources, seasonal variations, and recipes. Participatory approaches proved invaluable in uncovering these nuanced perceptions. These findings highlight the role of context, opportunities, and challenges in shaping maternal decision-making. It illustrates the intricate relationship between various factors including location, livelihoods, seasonality, infrastructure, household dynamics, recipes, and cultural influences. Furthermore, this study demonstrates the diversity of personal food environments within the drylands of northern Kenya and the interdependence of the different factors within the personal domain. These factors interact dynamically within specific locations, highlighting the importance of adopting an integrative approach. Such an approach is crucial for understanding and addressing food security challenges and contributes to the development of actionable, contextualised strategies to improve food and nutrition security, locally and globally. 5.1 Implications andrecommendations The in-depth insights on mothers’ food choices in complementary feeding can provide support for the designing of tailored interventions aimed at improving child nutrition across diverse contexts and conditions. For example, in the lowlands in Marsabit county, improving market access through enhanced infrastructure and storage facilities would be critical to improving child nutrition as limited accessibility to perishable foods remains a significant challenge in the area. Designing interventions that respect and incorporate cultural practices is equally vital to ensure community acceptance and sustainability. Establishing community platforms for knowledge exchange could further enhance efforts to improve personal food environments. These platforms would allow communities to share and adopt practical strategies, such as enhancing the healthiness and acceptance of foods by children through local modifications. Additionally, promoting the use of local and indigenous foods can also improve children’s dietary intake. Such initiatives would leverage existing cultural knowledge while addressing gaps in nutrition. At the policy level, this study contributes to global efforts to address food and nutrition security by emphasising the importance of integrating local knowledge into the design of interventions. This study is aligned with the global Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 2 (Zero Hunger), and emphasises Kenya's constitutional commitment to ensuring access to adequate food as a basic human right. Furthermore, these findings underscore the broader applicability of context-specific and culturally sensitive approaches in enhancing the food and nutrition security of households and children in other resourceconstrained and arid regions globally. Acknowledgements We are particularly grateful to the women of the Jiru Dansa, Adha Jabeza, Biftu, Jalalo, Saqake, Star, Hjinda Aaman, Namunyak and Nalokoile women’s groups in Marsabit County who participated in the research, for their continued collaboration throughout the study. We would also like to thank the research team consisting of the Rendille; Raphael Gudere and Regina Jalle, the Borana; Diba Tari, Zulekha Abdulkadir, and the Burji; Esther Hage, who built close relationships with the women and participated in the data collection process. We are also grateful to the numerous individuals who have provided their support; Dr. Ann Waters-Bayer and Dr. Margareta Lelea. The authors would like to thank The German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) who made this research possible through their funding provision. Author contributions PK and BK designed the study. With guidance from HW, PK and JK collected data with the support of research assistants. PK wrote the manuscript. BK and HW reviewed and supported 900 P.J.Kiprono et al. the data analysis, provided feedback for improvements, and reviewed and edited the manuscript. WAH contributed to the interpretation of the work and review of the manuscript. All authors reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript. Funding Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. This research was funded by The German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL), Grant Number 2820 FENV01. Data Availability The data that supports findings of this study are available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author. Declarations Conflict of interest The author(s) declare no conflict of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. 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Maternal & Child Nutrition, 14(2), e12542. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1111/ mcn. 12542 Publisher's Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Patricia Kiprono is a PhD candidate in Agricultural Sciences at the German Institute for Tropical and Sub-Tropical Agriculture (DITSL), Germany. Her research employs a transdisciplinary approach to investigate women's innovations in child nutrition among (agro)-pastoralists in Kenya drylands. With an academic background in nutrition, global health, and humanitarian operations her work has spanned across humanitarian, research, and development sectors since 2016. She has an interest in maternal and child nutrition, food security, agrinutrition, participatory methods, peer learning, knowledge co-creation, and practitioner innovations. Her research aims to contribute to the development of contextspecific interventions that improve the health outcomes of vulnerable populations. 904 P.J.Kiprono et al. Jennifer Kaiser holds a Bachelor’s degree in nutritional, food and consumer sciences from University of applied sciences, Fulda and MSc. Sustainable International Agriculture - Agribusiness from Georg-August-University Goettingen and University of Kassel. At the German Institute for Tropical and sub-tropical Agriculture, DITSL, through NaviNut project, she worked with pastoral and agro-pastoral women in northern Kenya to understand their food environments and child feeding practices. She is currently working in the Ministry of Food, Rural Affairs and Consumer Protection in Germany. Hussein Tadicha Wario is a researcher with over 15 years of experience in research and development work among pastoral communities in Eastern Africa. He holds a PhD in Agricultural Sciences from the University of Kassel, Germany and MSc. Natural Resource Management and Sustainable Agriculture. Dr. Wario is the Executive Director of the Centre for Research and Development in Drylands (CRDD), Kenya. He leads the implementation of transdisciplinary research initiatives including enhancing women's agency in changing food environments, optimizing rangeland-based livestock value chains with machine learning and digital technologies and exploring resilience amidst chronic uncertainty. His expertise encompasses pastoral land-use systems, socio-ecological research and local knowledge. Waliou Amoussa Hounkpatin Professor of Human Nutrition at the University of Abomey-Calavi, specializes in infant and young child feeding (IYCF), local resource utilization for dietary enhancement, food consumption studies, and assessing the impact of local agro-biodiversity on infant diets. He designs and evaluates educational videos to enhance feeding practices and utilizes isotopic methods to assess stunting reduction program effectiveness in Benin. Recently, his research has focused on improving iron bioavailability in school meals. Prof. Dr. Hounkpatin remains dedicated to contributing to women empowerment in rural food environments for enhanced child nutrition through a transdisciplinary approach. Brigitte A. Kaufmann is Professor of Social Ecology of Tropical and Subtropical Land Use Systems at the University of Hohenheim and Scientific Director of the German Institute of Tropical and Subtropical Agriculture (DITSL). She has more than 30 years of research experience in pastoral and agro-pastoral systems in East, West and Southern Africa. Starting from production theory, her approach shifted to systems theory and second-order cybernetics as a means of understanding pastoral systems. Her current focus is on transdisciplinary research and collaborative learning in the areas of food security, resource management, value chains and food systems.