Food Insecurity Experience Scale Research Articles

A comprehensive analysis of food insecurity in the drought-prone rural areas of Tigray.

The number of globally food-insecure people is increasing since 2017. Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest proportion of severely food-insecure people in the world. Tigray region of Ethiopia is one of the food-insecure regions, which, over the past many decades has been affected by recurrent food insecurities. In the drought-prone rural areas of Tigray, many people are living under the condition of chronic hunger. Proper food security studies are vital for proper intervention mechanisms. Yet, previous food security studies have rarely addressed the four pillars of food security: availability, access, utilization, and stability. In this study, all components are duly considered to assess the food insecurity status in the drought-prone rural areas of Tigray, Ethiopia. Of the 34 rural districts in Tigray, 363 households from three drought-prone rural districts were studied. Household Food Insecurity Access Scale and Food Insecurity Experience Scale were adapted to measure the food availability, access to food, and stability components of food security; and, Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS), Food Consumption Score (FCS), mid-upper arm circumference, and Bitot's spot were used to analyze the food utilization aspect. Findings show that 68% of the studied community frequently ate less food than they felt they needed and 82.1% of the households have experienced hunger because of lack of food. The study rural districts were unconnected to road networks; hence, 87.9% of the elderly and 20.4% of the women and girls had no access to food markets. Regarding the food utilization, 81.5% of the studied households had poor FCS; and the average HDDS and FCS for the study areas were 2.47 and 18.9, respectively. The prevalence of Global acute malnutrition, severe acute malnutrition (SAM), and moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) for 6-59months of age children in the study areas were 50.3, 4.2, and 46.1%, respectively. More notably, the prevalence of SAM for children from the food-insecure households was 21.2%. The prevalence of MAM for pregnant and lactating women (PLW) in the study areas was 59.5. Further, the prevalence of Bitot's spot among 6-59months of age children was 1.9%. On the other hand, all the rural households had anxiety about their future food demands. The rural households living in the studied areas were critically food-insecure. All the measurements implied that the food insecurity situation in the study areas was unacceptably worrisome and life-threatening. This calls for an instant action to avert the occurrence of famine and starvation in the drought-prone rural areas of Tigray region. Thus, interventions should primarily target the vulnerable rural people and need to be planned based on attaining food availability first rather than concurrently addressing all components of food security. Further, due emphasis should be given to diversifying livelihood strategies of the vulnerable villagers.

Food Insecurity Impacts Diet Quality, Health-Promoting Activities, and Perceived Stress

Food insecurity, defined as inadequate access to nutritious food, affects over two billion people globally. Poor nutrition and stress associated with food insecurity may negatively impact the performance of health-promoting activities. It may also increase stress levels through irregular eating patterns and concern over accessing suffcient food. However, the impact of food insecurity on engagement in health-promoting activities, stress, and dietary factors has yet to be studied extensively. This study aims to fill this gap by assessing the impact of food insecurity on health-promoting activities, perceived stress, and diet quality. It is hypothesized that food insecurity will negatively impact perceived stress levels and the frequency of engagement in health-promoting activities. It also hypothesized that those who engage in these activities more frequently will have better diet quality. An anonymous survey was administered to adults through various social media platforms. The survey contained demographic questions and seven validated scales: the Food Insecurity Experience Scale, Satisfaction, Alertness, Timing, Effciency, and Duration (SATED) Questionnaire, Health Promoting Activities Scale, Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and the Food Mood Questionnaire. These scales measured food insecurity status, sleep quality, frequency of health-promoting activities and self-care, self-esteem, perceived stress levels, physical activity, and dietary habits, respectively. Data from 561 individuals were analyzed using Pearson’s Correlation Coeffcient in IBM SPSS Version 28.0. The results indicate that being unable to eat healthy and nutritious food was negatively associated with performing personal care tasks (r= -0.136, p< 0.01) and social activities (r= -0.146, p< 0.01). It was also found that having to skip a meal was positively associated with being upset when something happens unexpectedly (r= 0.218, p< 0.01) and feeling unable to control the important things in life (r= 0.242, p< 0.01). Further, performing personal care tasks was negatively associated with eating fast food (r= -0.120, p< 0.01) and positively associated with consuming dark green, leafy vegetables (r= 0.216, p< 0.01), whole grains (r= 0.195, p< 0.01), and fruit (r= 0.287, p< 0.01). Our results suggest that food insecurity can negatively impact mental well-being, diet quality, and health-promoting behaviors. Interventions aimed at improving food security, and therefore diet quality, may have benefits for improving overall health and well-being. No funding was provided to conduct this research study. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Effects of Food Insecurity and Dietary Factors on Sleep Quality and Perceived Stress

Food insecurity is a significant concern at a national level, with college students facing a disproportionate impact. Food insecurity is defined as the lack of access to reliable and nutritious food. The link between food insecurity and perceived stress has been documented in prior research; however, its impact on sleep quality has yet to be studied. Food insecurity may reduce the nutritional quality of their diet and increase stress levels, which may negatively impact their sleep. This study aims to assess the impact of food insecurity and diet habits on perceived stress and sleep quality. Our hypothesis is that individuals with high food insecurity and a low quality diet experience higher perceived stress levels and decreased sleep quality. An anonymous survey was distributed through several social media platforms to individuals over the age of 18. The survey included demographic questions and seven validated scales. The scales included the Food Insecurity Experience Scale, Satisfaction, Alertness, Timing, Effciency, and Duration (SATED) Questionnaire, Health Promoting Activities Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and the Food Mood Questionnaire. These scales measured level of food insecurity, frequency of self-selected health activities, perceived stress, sleep quality, exercise habits, self-esteem, perceived stress, and dietary habits. Data from 561 individuals were analyzed using Pearson’s Correlation Coeffcient in IBM SPSS Version 28.0. The results reveal that feeling worried about having enough to eat was negatively correlated with sleep quality (r= 0-.177, p<0.01), sleeping between 6 and 8 hours a day (r= 0-.181, p<0.01), having confidence handling personal problems (r= -0.201, p<0.01), and consuming dark leafy vegetables (r= 0-.164, p<0.01). Feeling nervous and stressed was positively correlated with sleeping between 2am and 4am (r= 0.088, p<0.05) and negatively correlated with sleep satisfaction (r= 0-.335, p<0.01). Consuming fruits was positively correlated with sleep satisfaction (r= 0.112, p< 0.01), while consuming nuts was positively correlated with staying awake during the day (r= 0.136, p<0.01). The results suggest a strong relationship between food insecurity, diet quality, mental well-being, and sleep quality. Those who are food insecure are less likely to have adequate nutrition, which could raise their stress levels and increase diffculty sleeping. On the other hand, those who consume a well-balanced diet are more likely to have better quality sleep; however, it is worth noting that those who show signs of mental distress are less likely to have a good sleep quality. No funding was provided for this research study. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

The Role of Food Insecurity and Dietary Factors on Intensity of Physical Activity

Food insecurity is a prevalent issue among college students and is defined as the lack of access to reliable and nutritionally adequate foods. It leads to poor diet quality and increased anxiety and stress, which can make motivation to participate in physical activity more challenging. However, the specific role that food insecurity plays in physical activity and diet quality among the college population has yet to be thoroughly studied. To address this gap in the literature, the current study aims to assess the impact of food insecurity on diet quality and physical activity. It is hypothesized that those who report food insecurity will engage in less physical activity and have lower diet quality, potentially due to the lack of energy from a poor diet, and the preoccupation with pressing concerns for food access. Individuals over the age of 18 completed an anonymous survey that was distributed via social media and messaging platforms. The survey included demographic questions and seven validated scales including the Food Insecurity Experience Scale, International Physical Activity Questionnaire, Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale, Food Mood Questionnaire, Perceived Stress Scale, Health Promoting Activities Scale, and Satisfaction, Alertness, Timing, Effciency, and Duration (SATED) Questionnaire. These scales measured food insecurity status, physical activity levels, self-esteem, dietary habits, perceived stress, health promoting activities, and sleep. Data from 561 individuals were analyzed using Pearson’s Correlation Coeffcient in IBM SPSS Version 28.0. The results show that being unable to consume nutritiously adequate foods was negatively associated with participating in vigorous exercise (r= -0.122, p< 0.01). However, feeling hungry but not eating and going a whole day without eating were positively associated with performing moderate activity (r= 0.124, p< 0.01; r= 0.130, p< 0.01). Alongside this, it was revealed that consumption of whole grain foods was positively associated with vigorous physical activity and negatively correlated with the consumption of fast or pre-packaged foods. (r= 0.168, p<0.01; r= -0.124 p<0.01). In addition, the inability to eat healthy and nutritious foods was found to be negatively associated with consumption of whole grain foods and positively associated with the consumption of fast or pre-packaged foods (r= -0.110 p<0.01; r= 0.115 p< 0.01). These findings confirm that food insecurity is associated with lower diet quality and likely moderates the type of exercise performed. These phenomena may be explained by potentially lower metabolic energy, constant food-related stress, which negatively impacts motivation to perform, and the impact of socioeconomic status on the physical activity of college students. No funding was provided to conduct this research study. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

A Multiple Logistic Regression Analysis of Household Food and Nutrition Insecurity in Stunting and Non-Stunting Toddlers

Background: Stunting, wasting, and underweight are growth disorders in children under 5 years of age due to malnutrition in Indonesia. The level of macronutrient intake is a risk factor that directly influences stunting and wasting. Food insecurity is associated with poverty, malnutrition, and hunger. Objectives: This study aimed to analyze food and nutritional insecurity in households with stunting and non-stunting toddlers, using a multivariate model. Method: This study used a comparative cross-sectional design. Using the Lemeshow formula, 142 samples were obtained from a population of 822 children under five. Food insecurity was measured using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), diversity using IDDS, and macronutrient intake using 2x24-hour food recall. Stunting, wasting, and underweight were measured based on anthropometry. Bivariate analysis was performed using multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results: Food insecurity, energy intake, protein intake, carbohydrate intake, underweight, and maternal nutritional knowledge had a significant relationship with the incidence of stunting in toddlers. These results also showed that the underweight variable was the most dominant cause of stunting because it had the highest OR value of 18.572. The OR value showed that underweight toddlers were 18.572 times more likely to have a stunting nutritional status. Conclusions: Toddlers categorized as underweight face an 18.572 times higher likelihood of experiencing stunting in their nutritional status.

Sociodemographic Factors and Policy Implications for Improved Food Security

Ensuring food security is a pressing challenge facing East Kalimantan, and practical solutions are necessary. With the impending relocation of Indonesia's capital to this region, it's crucial to evaluate the area's food security in light of projected population growth and economic shifts. Prior to the new capital city project, it's essential to understand East Kalimantan's socio-economic factors to develop policies that strengthen food security for the future. This research uses logistic regression to analyze data from the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) module of the 2021 National Socio-Economic Survey (Susenas-BPS). The results show that 14.75% of households experience food insecurity, while 85.25% maintain food security. Factors such as education, family size, land ownership, marital status, employment, residence, and retirement security influence food security status significantly. However, age, gender, and home ownership have little impact. Notably, agricultural workers are more likely to experience food insecurity, while education and land ownership correlate with higher food security. Additionally, larger families are more vulnerable to food insecurity.

The effect of carbon farming training on food security and development resilience in Northern Ghana

ABSTRACT Carbon farming has recently been advocated for as climate change and variability mitigation and/or adaptation strategy in global agriculture. In this study, we address an important research question of whether carbon farming training can improve household resilience capacity as well as food security by employing internationally standardized indicators. Household resilience capacity and its components are measured using the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)’s resilience capacity index while the food security measures used include household and child food insecurity experience scale (FIES and CFIES), food consumption score (FCS) and household dietary diversity score (HDDS). We relied on doubly robust treatment effect estimators to account for potential selection bias and heterogeneity. We find that carbon farming training has no statistically significant effect on overall household resilience capacity. However, we find a large and statistically significant effect on key components of resilience (specifically, access to basic services, assets and social safety nets) and a marginal improvement in adaptive capacity. We also find statistically significant effect on FCS and HDDS but not for the other food security indicators (FIES and CFIES). Overall, the results suggest that agricultural training programs, particularly climate change adaptation capacity building initiatives, could improve important welfare measures in developing countries.

Prevalence of Food Insecurity and Associations with Academic Performance, Food Consumption and Social Support among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: FINESCOP Project in Iceland.

(1) Background: Food insecurity (FI) among university students has received less attention in Europe than in other regions before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. (2) Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between January and March 2022 using an online questionnaire (n = 924). The questionnaire addressed food security status; demographic, socioeconomic, and educational variables; academic performance; food consumption; and social support networks. The validated Food Insecurity Experience Scale was used to measure food security. Binary logistic regressions adjusted by age and gender were applied to identify FI-related factors. (3) Results: Just over 17% of the students were living with some level of FI, nearly one in three students reported having consumed few kinds of food, and 3.9% spent an entire day without eating due to a lack of resources. Food insecurity was associated with a higher likelihood of negative academic performance, decreased food consumption, and a lower likelihood of having a large support network, when compared to food-secure respondents. (4) Conclusions: The findings suggest that FI negatively impacts students' academic performance and food consumption. Future public health programs should be prioritized to prevent students from experiencing hunger due to financial or resource constraints.

Household food insecurity among child and adolescent athletics practitioners: A cross-sectional, descriptive, and exploratory study

ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to explore the prevalence of food insecurity among child and adolescent athletics practitioners and to investigate factors associated with exercise performance, dietary habits, body composition, sleep, and socioeconomic status based on food security status. MethodsThis was a cross-sectional, descriptive, and exploratory study conducted in Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil, between June and July 2023. The convenience sample included children and adolescents (7–17 y old) of both sexes. We evaluated exercise performance, household food insecurity (HFI), dietary-related parameters, and other body composition, lifestyle, and social-related variables. Exercise performance was assessed using the counter movement jump (CMJ), squat jump (SJ), horizontal long jump (HLJ), 50-m sprint test (50-m ST) and throwing strength test (TST). The assessment of HFI was conducted using the food insecurity experience scale (FIES). Comparisons and associations were investigated based on food security status. ResultsThe total sample size was comprised of 138 children (n = 42; 30.4%) and adolescents (n = 96; 69.6%). We found an association between food security status and sex (X2(138,1) = 4.42; P = 0.036). SJ was higher in the food security group than in the HFI group (t(117) = 2.112; P = 0.037; ES = 0.39). Sleep- and dietary-related factors did not differ between the groups. ConclusionsIn summary, the prevalence of HFI among child and adolescent athletics participants was approximately 40%. Regarding exercise performance, SJ was better in the food security group than in the HFI group. Concerning dietary-related data, the HFI group had a lower number of meals per day than the food security group, and other dietary data did not differ between the groups. Body composition and sleep-related parameters were similar between the groups.

Climate shocks’ impact on agricultural income and household food security in Bangladesh: An implication of the food insecurity experience scale

Floods and extreme rainfall are common climatic phenomena in Bangladesh, and farm households are more susceptible to such shocks. This paper assesses the impact of climate shocks on agricultural income and food security of farm households in Bangladesh using an extensive nationally representative dataset from the Bangladesh Integrated Household Survey 2018–19, including 5604 sample rural households in 64 districts. However, this research considered 24 districts, representing 2131 sample farm households, by developing an exogenous climate shock indicator based on data from the Yearbook of Agricultural Statistics of Bangladesh 2018. Empirical findings on the grounds of simultaneous quantile regression reveal that climate shocks substantially lower agricultural income in the study regions. However, the presence of prime-age women (15–49) in the home, the male-headed family, farmland, and livestock ownership of the household are the decisive factors that safeguard agricultural income. Applying the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), descriptive statistics disclose that most farm households suffer at various food insecurity levels (considerably moderate, noticeably mild, and tiny severe), while the rest are at the food security level. The key finding regarding ordered probit regression uncovers that climate shocks significantly increase household food insecurity (at different levels of FIES). In other words, cropland damage due to floods and extreme rainfall reduces the food security of farm households in the study districts. On the other hand, increased farm size and educated households are profoundly protected against food insecurity. This study, therefore, recommends that raising livestock can complement agricultural income, and enhancing education would ensure households’ food security in the climate-exposed areas of Bangladesh.

Prevalence of food insecurity among caregivers of young children during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland.

Our objectives were to explore the prevalence of food insecurity in primary caregivers of young children in Ireland and to compare two tools for measuring food insecurity during the COVID-19 crisis. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among caregivers of children aged <2 years in Ireland in May/June 2020. Relevant survey questions were closed-ended using two established tools for measuring food poverty/insecurity; the Irish Food Poverty Indicator and the Food Insecurity Experience Scale, developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization. Descriptive statistics were used to calculate the prevalence of food poverty/insecurity. To explore agreement in the classification of food insecurity by the Food Poverty Indicator and the Food Insecurity Experience Scale, Cohen's κ was used. Analyses are based on 716 participants; most had a 3rd-level education and were married or in a partnership. Per the food poverty index, Ireland's national measure of food poverty, 3.9% (n = 28) of our sample were experiencing food poverty. This rose to 10.5% (n = 75) experiencing food insecurity when using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale, which also measures worry/anxiety around access to food. There was low agreement between the tools, with 11.3% of the sample classified as food secure by one tool and food insecure by the other. Our current measure of food poverty in Ireland may not be sufficient to describe the food-access struggles or worry/anxiety about food access, experienced by the population, particularly during an emergency like COVID-19.

Food insecurity, eating behaviour, and relative weight change among young adults in the aftermath of the COVID-19 lockdown

ABSTRACT This study aims to investigate the association between food insecurity, eating behaviour and relative weight change among Malaysian young adults in the aftermath of the pandemic-led lockdown. Socio-demographics, body height, and body weight were self-reported by the young adults. Food security was assessed using the 8-item validated Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), while the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire-Revised 18-item (TFEQ-R18) was adopted to evaluate the eating behaviour of young adults. Of the 447, 45.9% maintained the same body weight as before the pandemic-led lockdown. While almost half of the young adults (47.2%) were food secure, about one-fourth (24.8%) suffered moderate-to-severe food insecurity. Meanwhile, the standardised raw scores for all the eating behaviour subscales were in the ascending order of cognitive restraint (49.37 ± 18.60) < uncontrolled eating (50.61 ± 20.37) < emotional eating (50.68 ± 24.50). The findings of the Sobel test indicated that the mediation effects of eating behaviour were not statistically significant (p > 0.05), suggesting that eating behaviour (cognitive restraint, uncontrolled eating and emotional eating) did not mediate the relationship between moderate-to-severe food insecurity and relative weight change. Health promotion interventions such as introducing food assistance programs, offering incentives for nutritious food purchases, and re-emphasising healthy eating are essential to rectify food insecurity and disordered eating among Malaysians.

The analysis of dietary diversity and food insecurity experience of urban farmers’ households in Bandung City

More than 96% of Bandung City's food sources came from outside Bandung City and put Bandung as a food insecure city. One of the Bandung City Government's strategies was to increase the availability and access of food through urban farming. This research aimed to examine the household food security of urban farmers’ families through the dietary diversity and food insecurity experiences. In this paper, the samples were all 12 P2L (Pekarangan Pangan Lestari/Sustainable Food Garden) groups in Bandung City as well as 13 groups of Buruan SAE located in the same sub-district as the P2L groups. The comparison method was carried out based on HDDS (Household Dietary Diversity Scale) questionnaire and FIES (Food Insecurity Experience Scale) prevalence between the P2L group and the Buruan SAE group. The result showed that both urban farming groups had high HDDS scores (&gt;6 types of food consumed). Based on the prevalence of FIES, there are 38.45% of the Buruan SAE group with mildly food insecure status, higher than the P2L group which is 16.67%. This can be caused by the biodiversity of agricultural land, household income and land ownership status.

Undernutrition and its determinants among under-five children in a tribal community of Meghalaya.

Malnutrition among under-five children is a rampant and major public health problem in developing countries. The paucity of studies on undernutrition among tribals made it imperative to determine the prevalence and the factors associated with undernutrition among the tribal under-five children. A community-based cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among 196 under-five children residing in the village under the rural field practice area of North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS), Meghalaya. Sociodemographic and clinical data were collected using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire, and burden of food insecurity was collected using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale Survey Module (FIES-SM). Anthropometric measurements, such as height, weight, and mid-upper arm circumference, were measured for all the children, and Z-scores were calculated for weight for age, height for age, and weight for height. Of the 196 children, the mean age of the children was 36.7 (15.3) months. The prevalence of underweight, stunting, and wasting was 9.2% (95% confidence interval (CI): 5.7%-14.3%), 28.6% (95% CI: 22.5%-35.5%), and 6.1% (95% CI: 3.3%-10.7%), respectively. There was a significant association for girls, birth weight, and age of the mother during first childbirth and immunization status with underweight. Similarly, there was a significant association for girls with wasting and education of the mother and birth weight with stunting. The prevalence of underweight wasting and stunting was lesser with an observable enhancement in the nutritional status of the children; however, the undernutrition status is still alarming, which warrants health and nutritional education along with behavioral change communication.

Informality, Food Insecurity and Intra-Household Resource Allocation: Evidence from Pakistan

The significance of employment in alleviating household poverty and enhancing overall well-being is widely acknowledged. In Pakistan, even with the notable growth in agricultural production, the country struggles with significant levels of food insecurity, affecting approximately 20.3 percent of the population, as indicated by a 2019 global report. This research investigates the impact of informal employment on the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) and the distribution of resources within households, including categories such as food, non-food items, education, and health. Utilizing data from the Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) conducted in 2018-19, fractional response and ordered logit models were employed to analyze the influence of informal employment on resource allocation across various categories and household food insecurity. The findings indicated that households headed by individuals in informal employment typically allocate a more significant portion of their budget to food and health than those in formal employment. Moreover, the impact of informal employment on non-food expenses appears limited, and households with informal workers demonstrate reduced spending on education compared to their formal counterparts. Additionally, the study highlights a higher probability of severe or moderate food insecurity levels in households headed by individuals in informal employment. Comprehending employment and household welfare dynamics necessitates a thorough understanding of intra-household dynamics. This research contributes valuable insights for policymakers, aiding in identifying critical areas for expanding social protection measures for informal workers.

Validation of the Malay version of Food Insecurity Experience Scale (M-FIES) using Rasch analysis

Introduction: Food security can be defined as the availability of and accessibility to food, acquired in an acceptable means at any given time and place in a way that could maintain health and wellbeing. One critical dimension of food security is continued access to adequate food. To measure this dimension, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) developed the latest measurement tool, namely the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), the first instrument to measure people who experience food insecurity globally. This study aimed to validate the construct validity and reliability of the Malay version of FIES (M-FIES) for Malaysians. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 145 households in Kuantan, Pahang. Rasch analysis was used to analyse the construct validity of FIES. Results: FIES met the Rasch model assumptions with all items having an infit value of between 0.7- 1.3 and an outfit value of &lt;2.0. The item and person reliability were 0.97 and 0.71, respectively; while the item and person separation were 5.59 and 1.58, respectively. The FIES item severity indicated that the items “few food”, “healthy”, “skipped”, “ate less”, and “runout” were disordered. Conclusion: The M-FIES is a valid and reliable measurement tool for the food insecurity situation among households based on its construct validity assessed using the Rasch model. Furthermore, the severity of item in M-FIES was different in terms of order from the original FIES, suggesting that the same items may be interpreted differently due to cultural or societal differences.

The double burden of COVID-19 and a major volcanic eruption on local food production and food security in a Small Island Developing State

IntroductionSmall Island Developing States have disproportionately high food insecurity rates, related to complex challenges and vulnerabilities. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted that within these settings, crises often overlap. We aimed to assess the impact of the concurrent COVID-19 pandemic and volcanic eruption on food production and security in St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG).MethodsAn interpretive mixed-methods study was conducted among a convenience sample of consenting adults ≥18 years from 100 households in SVG through a cross-sectional survey and participant interviews (10 households) between September 2021 and March 2022. Food insecurity prevalence over the past year was assessed using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES; Rasch modeling) and impacts to livelihoods from the pandemic and volcanic eruption was assessed using an adapted Caribbean COVID-19 Food Security and Livelihoods Impact Survey (Caribbean COVID-19 FS&amp;amp;L Survey). Data were analyzed using logistic regression.ResultsDuring the pandemic, 59% of the participants reported decreased income, 63% had no access to markets, 81% had no access to food aid; 34% of the participants had a change in food sources, and 81% reported that food production was negatively impacted by the volcanic eruptions, of which 68% reported decreased food production. The interviews highlighted that access to markets were restricted by fear of leaving home and contracting the COVID-19 virus, and participants who received food aid stated that the number of items were not sufficient for larger families. Almost half of the participants were severely food insecure [48% (95% C.I. 31.2,57.8)]; almost two thirds were moderately to severely food insecure [64% (95% C.I. 50.0, 74.2)]; mean FIES score 5.31 (95% C.I. 5.0,5.6). After adjusting for gender, age, education, and household size, moderate to severe food insecurity was associated with no access to food aid during the pandemic and post-eruptions (odds ratio 3.7; 95% confidence interval 1.5, 9.1; p = 0.004).ConclusionFood insecurity rates were high during the COVID-19 pandemic, exacerbated by volcanic eruptions and insufficient access to food aid. Our results suggest the need for the development of strategies and interventions aimed at increasing the resilience of food systems to mitigate the effects of future disasters.

Financial Hardship on Food Security in Ageing Populations.

Objective: This study investigated the prevalence of food security, and the association of food security with financial hardship and socio-demographic characteristics among the ageing population in Thailand. Methods: The study extracted data on 1,197 persons age 60years or older from a nationally-representative sample survey of Thai households. The food security data were collected using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization. Multiple regression analysis was used to investigate the association between financial hardship, socio-demographic characteristics, and food security. Results: Of the total sample, 71% had food security. The least probability of having food security was observed in the respondents who sometimes and often had income problems (p < 0.001), and felt dissatisfied with their financial situation (p < 0.001). The respondents who were female, at oldest-old age, with lower than primary school education and in the Northeast were less likely to have food security. Conclusion: These findings suggest the need for government assistance for those who are experiencing financial hardship to help them manage their finances and food security more effectively, taking into account different socio-demographic characteristics.

Food insecurity, coping strategies, and resilience of agricultural cooperative members during COVID-19 in West Africa

BackgroundLockdown measures of COVID-19 have had different repercussions on the well-being of households in West Africa depending on their resilience capacity. This study compares the dynamic of households’ food insecurity during COVID-19 pandemic according to their membership in different types of agricultural cooperatives in four West African countries, namely Ghana, Mali, Ivory Coast, and Senegal.MethodologyWe used data collected from 1270 members of agricultural cooperatives and regression analyses, to understand the link between the nature of their cooperatives and the food insecurity dynamic of their household, while controlling for other sociodemographic characteristics. Cooperative were categorized either “active” or “poorly/not active” depending on their capacity to conduct initiatives that address the needs of their members, to maintain communication between leaders and members, the participation of members to decisions, and their possession of a good understanding of business management. Food insecurity is measured using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) and the Coping Strategy Index (CSI). Respondents were asked to answer questions related to their food security status for the period before and during the pandemic.ResultsThe COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected respondents' food security status. These effects varied according to the severity of sanitary measures implemented and to the dynamism of cooperatives. Households of poorly or not active cooperatives have experienced more food insecurity in Ivory Coast and Senegal than those who were members of active cooperatives; in Ghana the effects were significant but similar in both types of cooperatives. Members of both cooperatives in Mali appear to have been less affected than members in other countries. Furthermore, households of poorly/not active cooperatives have used more severe coping strategies in Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Senegal during the pandemic.ConclusionsStrong collaboration and support provided by cooperatives can contribute to increase the resilience capacity of their members to shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Examining the disparities: A cross-sectional study of socio-economic factors and food insecurity in Togo.

Despite many interventions, Togo continues to have one of the highest rates of poverty and food insecurity in the sub-Saharan African region. Currently there is no systematic analysis of the factors associated with household food-insecurity in this country. This study aimed at exploring the factors associated with food insecurity in Togo. This was a cross-sectional study that used data from five waves (2014 to 2018) of the Gallup World Poll (GWP) for Togo. Sample size included 4754 participants, aged 15 and above. Food insecurity was measured using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) questionnaire as per the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) guidelines. Our outcome variable was food insecurity, categorized as: 1) food secure (FIES score = 0-3), moderately food insecure (FIES score = 4-6), and severely food insecure (FIES score = 7-8). We did descriptive and multinomial regressions to analyze data using Stata version 16. Between 2014 and 2018, the percentage of severe food insecurity fluctuated-42.81% in 2014, 37.79% in 2015, 38.98% in 2016, 45.41% in 2017, and 33.84% in 2018. Whereas that of moderate food insecurity increased from 23.55% to 27.33% except for 2016 and 2017 where the percentage increased to 32.33% and 27.46% respectively. In the logistic regression analysis, we found that respondents with lower than elementary education had a higher relative risk ratio of moderate (RRR = 1.45,95%CI = 1.22-1.72) and severe (RRR = 1.72, 95%CI = 1.46-2.02) food insecurity compared to those with secondary and higher education. Rural respondents had higher RRR of severe food insecurity (RRR = 1.37, 95%CI = 1.16-1.62) compared to those who lived in the urban areas. Compared with those in the richest wealth quintile, respondents in the poorest wealth quintile had 2.21 times higher RRR of moderate (RRR = 2.21, 95%CI = 1.69-2.87) and 3.58 times higher RRR of severe (RRR = 3.58, 95%CI = 2.81-4.55) food insecurity. About two-thirds of participants experienced some level of food insecurity in 2018. Lower levels of education, rural residency and poorer household wealth index areas were associated with a higher risk of food insecurity. National food security programs should focus on promoting education and improving socioeconomic condition of people especially in rural areas.