Food, beverages and tobacco in Kenya
Kenya: Food, beverages and tobacco was 53.3% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Food, beverages and tobacco in Kenya, 1963–2023
Source: International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). Measured in % of value added in manufacturing.
Analysis
Kenya recorded 53.3% for food, beverages and tobacco in 2023.
The figure is down 0.7% on the previous year and up 34.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, food, beverages and tobacco in Kenya peaked at 56.7% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 28.5%, in 2008.
Kenya ranks 30th of 157 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
Food, beverages and tobacco in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % of value added in manufacturing | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1963 | 39.2% | — |
| 1964 | 38.2% | -2.7% |
| 1965 | 36.2% | -5.1% |
| 1966 | 36.3% | +0.1% |
| 1967 | 34.6% | -4.6% |
| 1968 | 31.9% | -7.7% |
| 1969 | 33.8% | +5.9% |
| 1970 | 33.3% | -1.5% |
| 1971 | 31.4% | -5.5% |
| 1972 | 31.7% | +0.9% |
| 1973 | 31.1% | -2.1% |
| 1974 | 33.0% | +6.3% |
| 1975 | 33.8% | +2.4% |
| 1976 | 42.4% | +25.2% |
| 1977 | 40.8% | -3.7% |
| 1978 | 40.2% | -1.4% |
| 1979 | 37.7% | -6.4% |
| 1980 | 34.0% | -9.8% |
| 1981 | 32.5% | -4.4% |
| 1982 | 36.4% | +12.1% |
| 1983 | 36.5% | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 41.3% | +13.0% |
| 1985 | 40.4% | -2.0% |
| 1986 | 40.4% | -0.1% |
| 1987 | 40.6% | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 39.9% | -1.7% |
| 1989 | 40.0% | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 38.5% | -3.9% |
| 1991 | 39.8% | +3.4% |
| 1992 | 41.8% | +5.0% |
| 1993 | 43.2% | +3.3% |
| 1994 | 43.6% | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 47.9% | +9.9% |
| 1996 | 48.4% | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 45.7% | -5.6% |
| 1998 | 46.0% | +0.6% |
| 1999 | 34.0% | -26.1% |
| 2000 | 28.6% | -16.0% |
| 2001 | 28.6% | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 29.5% | +3.2% |
| 2003 | 30.6% | +3.7% |
| 2004 | 30.0% | -2.1% |
| 2005 | 29.0% | -3.1% |
| 2006 | 29.4% | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 30.3% | +3.0% |
| 2008 | 28.5% | -5.8% |
| 2009 | 35.1% | +23.2% |
| 2010 | 36.3% | +3.3% |
| 2011 | 37.9% | +4.4% |
| 2012 | 38.9% | +2.7% |
| 2013 | 39.7% | +2.1% |
| 2014 | 38.6% | -2.8% |
| 2015 | 39.3% | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 55.1% | +40.4% |
| 2017 | 55.5% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 56.6% | +1.9% |
| 2019 | 56.7% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 56.1% | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 54.7% | -2.5% |
| 2022 | 53.7% | -1.8% |
| 2023 | 53.3% | -0.7% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 53.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 34.6%, 1.5× the median. (33 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 53.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 56.3%, 95% of the median. (36 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Food, beverages and tobacco in Kenya changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | +40.4% | 39.3% | 55.1% |
| 1999 | -26.1% | 46.0% | 34.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 35.7% | 31.9% | 39.2% | 7 |
| 1970s | 35.6% | 31.1% | 42.4% | 10 |
| 1980s | 38.2% | 32.5% | 41.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 42.9% | 34.0% | 48.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 30.0% | 28.5% | 35.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.5% | 36.3% | 56.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 54.4% | 53.3% | 56.1% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More economy & growth data for Kenya
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.28 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 5.26 Percent per annum (2029)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 417.66 million BoP, current US$ (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0035 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 7.4 BoP, current US$ per person (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 463.44 million BoP, current US$ (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual -8.77 % change on previous year (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0038 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 8.21 BoP, current US$ per person (2024)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 23.12 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is food, beverages and tobacco in Kenya?
- Food, beverages and tobacco in Kenya was 53.3% in 2023, according to International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
- What is the highest food, beverages and tobacco recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 56.7% in 2019.
- What is the lowest food, beverages and tobacco recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 28.5% in 2008.
- How does Kenya rank for food, beverages and tobacco?
- Kenya ranks 30th out of 157 countries with data for 2023.
- Is food, beverages and tobacco rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 34.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), published as part of Food, beverages and tobacco (% of value added in manufacturing). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 61 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Manufacturing of food, beverages, and tobacco includes industries classified in ISIC (Rev. 3) divisions 15 and 16. Value added is the contribution to the economy by a producer or an industry or an institutional sector, which is estimated by the total value of output produced and deducting the total value of intermediate consumption of goods and services used to produce that output. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of value added in manufacturing which is the contribution to the economy by the manufacturing sector (ISIC Rev. 3 major division D).