Abstract
A Rapid Food Security Appraisal among 240 rural and urban dwellers in southern Benin was conducted, using univariate and bivariate analyses, to evaluate the effects of the imposed COVID-19 ‘cordon sanitaire’ on food consumption patterns. As this is one of the first empirical studies on the COVID-19 food security nexus, we found that the raging pandemic has affected the food security pillars (availability, accessibility, utilization, and stability) in both rural and urban areas, within and outside the cordon sanitaire. The steepest decline was observed among respondents who live inside the cordon sanitaire, where rural producers and urban inhabitants without access to allotment gardens were hit hard. Increased food prices, disruptions in food logistics, and inability to work due to movement restrictions were most frequently indicated as reasons for the decline. Access to allotment gardens effectively supported households in mitigating the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the food crisis.
Highlights
We found that rural producers, urban gardeners, and urban non-gardeners, both within and outside the cordon sanitaire, experienced a decline in their food security
A growing body of literature has predicted a global decline in food security due to spikes in food prices and disruptive food chains, this study is among the first that provides empirical evidence on the effects of the COVID-19-related policy measures on the food security of vulnerable populations
There was a global decline in the food consumption levels of urban gardeners, urban non-gardeners, and rural producers
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Since 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has become an unprecedented public health crisis that has triggered radical measures across the world. As of 12 March 2021, the COVID-19 dashboard has registered almost 119 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 2.6 million deaths according to the WHO [1].
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