Drivers and Barriers of Whole Grain Consumption in the Philippines: 2019 Expanded National Nutrition Survey

Abstract

Whole grains are considered one of the best sources of dietary fiber, which is beneficial for good health across different population groups. However, consumption remains low in the Philippines. This study aimed to evaluate the drivers and barriers to the consumption of whole grains among Filipinos across all population groups. The study is part of the dietary component of the 2019 Expanded National Nutrition Survey (ENNS), wherein the master sample (MS) was adopted from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). The ENNS is a two-stage cluster sampling design that covered 39 provinces and highly urbanized cities (HUCs) in the Philippines. About 78% of the 141,167 individuals, aged 3 yr old and above, who were sampled participated in the survey. Generated data were analyzed using STATA version 15.0. Slightly less than half of the participants (48.4%) consumed whole grains and products. The highest proportion of current consumers was from the highest income quintile (57.1%) and those residing in urban areas (49.6%). The most commonly described consumption pattern was consuming every month (38.7%), and the most common mealtime consumption was during breakfast (43.2%). Among consumers, reported drivers of consumption were as follows: good taste (56.1%), preference or habit of consuming (25.9%), beneficial and good for health (16.0%), convenient to eat, or easy to prepare (11.1%), and attractive packaging (9.7%). Among participants 15 yr old and above, more than half of whole grains were unaware of the health benefits of whole grain consumption, although approximately 20% perceived that the health benefit of whole grains is that they can “make you feel full.” The barriers to consumption were high cost (39.7%), lack of access or availability (36.6%), and bad taste (22.7%). Only half of the Filipinos surveyed were consumers of whole grains and products, and often they are only consuming these once a month. Lack of awareness of its beneficial effects, high cost, inaccessibility, and taste are the barriers to whole grain consumption. In order to increase whole grain consumption, it is suggested that actions to develop simple messages based on the drivers of consumption should be provided across varied communication channels, including social media, to fully address the barriers to whole grain consumption.