Household Food Supplies Research Articles

UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF HOME GARDENS IN HOUSEHOLD FOOD SUPPLY IN TIMES OF SHOCKS AND UNCERTAINTY: EVIDENCE FROM COVID-19 LOCKDOWN IN NIGERIA

Home gardening has continued to gain increased interest among researchers because of its role in promoting household food security and strengthening local agrifood systems, particularly in developing countries like Nigeria. In times of shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely disrupted food supply chains, it offers significant potential to drive sustainable household food supply. However, its potential to fully support household food supply in Nigeria remains underutilized. This study analyzes the role of home gardens in food supply among households during the COVID-19 lockdown, using cross-sectional data from 140 university staff members randomly selected. The data were collected via an online survey during the COVID-19 lockdown and analyzed using a probit model. The result shows that most respondents owned a home garden. However, only 52 percent of the home gardeners obtained food from the garden during the COVID-19 lockdown. Socio-demographic characteristics such as gender and age were inversely related to ownership of a home garden, while household size, house location and education showed a positive and significant relationship. The food crops grown in the home gardens were mainly vegetables, cassava (Manihot esculenta) and maize (Zea mays). The primary reason for owning a home garden was the access to organic food and vegetables. The findings of this study suggest that home gardens offer the potential to sustain household food supply in times of food shocks and uncertainty.

Associations between Barriers to Food Pantry Use, Visit Frequency, Pantry Experiences, and Amount of Food Received.

Background/Objectives: Barriers to food pantry use have been identified but little information is available regarding how these barriers are related to food pantry use. The purpose of this study was to assess relationships between barriers and (1) user demographic characteristics, (2) visit frequency and amount of food received, and (3) satisfaction with pantry visit experiences. Methods: Data were used from the 2022 Minnesota Food Shelf Survey, which included responses from 288 food pantries across the state with 6267 individuals reporting on barriers to pantry use. Survey barrier statements included limits on frequency of visits allowed, lack of reliable transportation, scheduling difficulties, and other. Survey satisfaction statements included being able to choose food types, being made welcome, having an easy selection process, having different varieties of food available, and foods having a favorable appearance. Chi-square and mixed model logistic regression analyses were used to assess relationships between reporting barriers and demographic characteristics, visit satisfaction, visit frequency, and amount of food received in the past 6 months. Results: Respondents were primarily non-Hispanic White (65%) and female (68%). Regression models showed that reporting barriers to pantry use was not associated with user demographic characteristics, but was associated with greater odds of visiting the pantry more often, and lower odds of getting more food from the pantry or reporting a satisfactory food pantry visit experience. Conclusions: Findings may be useful for food pantry staff to improve pantry access and visit experiences and for public health professionals who advise those who use food pantries to supplement household food supplies.

Low levels and determinants of appropriate complementary feeding practices among children aged 6–23 months from Tigray, Ethiopia: a community-based cross-sectional study

IntroductionComplementary feeding is considered appropriate when introduced timely at 6 months of age, and where it fulfils the minimum meal frequency, minimum dietary diversity and minimum acceptable diet. Sufficient evidence...

Using IoT and AI to replenish household food supplies: A systematic review

Food wastage because of the lack or incompletion of a household replenishment system is an essential topic to be addressed. An appropriate utilization of Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies with particular components is needed to design a smart household replenishment system to reduce food wastage. Therefore, this systematic review is dedicated to survey papers utilizing IoT and AI tools for perishable items storage compartments, as they are always full of items that need to be monitored. This study was conducted by following the PRISMA search strategy. It examined 70 papers in chronological order starting from 2000 when LG Electronics invented the first smart refrigerator, and research on technology involvement in food storage compartments increased. This comprehensive research aims to point out the approaches, contributions, used components and limitations of the reviewed papers to develop a unified framework for a household replenishment system. The analysis resulted in 43 approaches using IoT technology, 27 using AI, and recently the use of AIoT has been trending in the past two years. This systematic review provides future directions for researchers acquired from the limitations of the reviewed papers to enhance the household replenishment system by developing and adding required features in smart food storage compartments. Further investigation into smart home appliances would lead to extensive approaches like smart shops, industries, and eventually smart cities.

Experiences of New Visitors With Low Food Security Seeking Food Assistance During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Experiences of New Visitors With Low Food Security Seeking Food Assistance During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Association between household food security and infant feeding practices among women with children aged 6-23 months in rural Zambia.

Infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices directly affect the nutritional status of children under two years of age, ultimately impacting their survival. However, ensuring that newborns and young children are fed according to the WHO-recommended practice has proven to be a challenge in many developing nations, especially in households that face food insecurity. This study aims to determine the association between IYCF practices and household food security's availability and access dimensions in rural Zambia. The study uses data from a cross-sectional survey of 2,127 mother-child pairs drawn from 28 rural districts in 8 out of the 10 Zambian provinces. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association of minimum dietary diversity, minimum meal frequency, and minimum acceptable diet with measures of household food security such as household dietary diversity score, and food insecurity experience scale, while controlling for confounding variables. The results show that children living in households classified as being food-secure based on the household dietary diversity score were significantly more likely to achieve appropriate feeding practices on all three IYCF measures, even after controlling for confounding factors. Notably, poor IYCF practices exist even in food-secure households, as most children in these households still need to receive a minimum acceptable diet. Although living in a household classified as food secure based on the access dimensions of household dietary diversity score and food insecurity experience scale is significantly associated with improvements in all three IYCF indicators even after controlling for confounding factors, the relationship does not hold for the availability measure of months of adequate household food provisioning. These findings highlight the need for targeting specific dimensions of household food security to solve child malnutrition, especially in rural areas. The focus should go beyond basic food availability, ensuring adequate diversity, and enhancing knowledge of appropriate feeding practices.

A Holistic Analysis of Food Security Situation of Households Engaged in Land Certification and Sustainable Land Management Programs: South Wello, Ethiopia.

Land degradation, food and tenure insecurity are significant problems in the northern highlands of Ethiopia, particularly in the region known as the country's famine corridor. Addressing these twine issues in the region has become a focal point for both local and international organizations, underscoring the significance of preventive measures. Since 2000, the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) has been implementing sustainable land management and certification programs. This study aims on households involved in these programs, specifically in Dessie Zuria and Kutaber Woredas, South Wello Zone (SWZ). The primary objectives of the research were to assess households' current food security status, identify factors influencing their food security, and classify coping and survival strategies employed by households during food shortages. Primary and secondary sources have been used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. Quantitative data were collected from surveyed households and analyzed USING SPSS software version 26, whereas qualitative data were transcribed, grouped, and interpreted in line with the aim of the research. Three food security models, namely the Household Food Balance Model, Months of Adequate Household Food Provisioning, and Household Dietary Diversity Score, were employed to evaluate food security. Consequently, a significant percentage of the surveyed households, amounting to 88.3%, 35.6%, and 93.8%, were found to experience food insecurity according to the respective models. Rainfall shortages and variability, crop pests and diseases, shrinking farm plots, and land degradation are among the identified food security determinants. During dearth periods, households deploy a variety of coping and survival strategies. To mitigate food insecurity stemming from both natural and socio-economic factors, the research suggests several recommendations. These include advocating for tenure policy reforms by the GoE, and the local governments should promote the adoption of efficient land management practices, instituting a land certification system based on cadasters, encouraging family planning, boosting investments in education and literacy, raising awareness and providing training in climate-smart agriculture techniques, educating communities on optimal grain utilization, saving, trade, and storage methods, facilitating opportunities for income generation through off-farm and non-farm activities, and offering support for crop and livestock diversification.

Application of item response theory modelling to measure an aggregate food security access score

Food security measurement is of paramount importance as it guides governance, policy formulation and intervention projects targeting and monitoring and evaluation. The measurement of food insecurity has proven to be a difficult task owing to the multi-dimensionality of the construct and different measurements have been developed to measure different dimensions of food insecurity. However, it is difficult to apply the different measurements to a holistic food security measurement as their classification might not agree. The current study proposes a composite food insecurity indicator by aggregating items from Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS), Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) and Months of Inadequate Household Food Provision (MIHFP) for Windhoek households’ data into a single measure using the Rasch Testlet Response Model. The composite measure was internally validated against the HDDS, HFIAS and MIHFP and externally validated against household income and the Lived Poverty Index (LPI) using Spearman's Rank Correlation and Cohen's Kappa. The validation results suggest that the metric could be a promising measure of aggregate food insecurity worth further investigation and discussion. However, more research is needed in coming up with cut-points for categorizing households into food insecurity statuses. In addition, the metric has only been computed and tested on a single urban sample in the Global South and hence it is not generalizable to different setups. Other researchers who might want to use the index can try to estimate and validate the index in different scenarios and suggest ways the index can be improved.

Growing local:

Home food gardening has seen a resurgence since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. This article presents the preliminary findings from the first 6 months of a 22-month home food gardening study in Nova Scotia, Canada. Participant home food gardeners were asked to log their weekly gardening activities and their household food expenses. Diary entries show how their home food production fostered community connections, occasioned new social interactions, and fed households. Diaries show that participants enjoyed growing food and felt a sense of accomplishment in their gardening. Growing food from seed is not an easy endeavour, especially in Nova Scotia: it is time consuming and often involves manual labour in addition to having expertise. Home food gardening presents an opportunity to impact household and community food security, albeit in specific ways. This is timely research, as the COVID-19 pandemic has brought household food supply into renewed focus for many Canadians.

Diabetes in the cost‐of‐living crisis

Diabetes in the cost‐of‐living crisis

Short-Term Courses in Organic Agriculture for Home Gardens: A Potential Approach to Securing Household Food Supply

Aims: The Central Bicol State University of Agriculture (CBSUA) takes responsibility and leadership in the Bicol region's agriculture and allied technological sciences field. This study determined the possibility of offering short-term courses in Organic Agriculture at the Central Bicol State University of Agriculture.
 Study Design: Descriptive design was used in the study.
 Place and Duration of the Study: The study was conducted in Pili, Camarines Sur, Philippines, for six months in 2019.
 Methodology: A survey questionnaire was used to determine the demographic profile, motivations, reasons, and learning areas of interest among prospective enrollees on short-term courses in organic agriculture. The respondents were selected using purposive sampling, including 30 SHS teachers, 58 School Administrators, and 91 home gardeners. The data were tabulated through frequency count and percentage.
 Results: Results revealed that most prospective enrollees are from the old age bracket (42.25%), interested in home gardening (50.84%), want to learn about basic competencies of organic agriculture (29.05%), and earn a National Certificate for teaching purposes (25.69%). Their main reasons if they are to enroll in the program was health or personal well-being (22.91%). Most respondents wanted to learn about crop and animal production (44.69%) among the learning areas in organic agriculture.
 Conclusion: This study indicates that short-term courses in organic agriculture have the possibility to be offered at the University.

ПРОДОВОЛЬЧЕ ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ДОМОГОСПОДАРСТВ УКРАЇНИ: РЕАЛІЇ СЬОГОДЕННЯ

Today, Ukraine's food security is an important component of national security. The almost two-year war with the Russian Federation disrupted the sustainable production of basic food products and their availability to the population. Overcoming the complex challenges that Ukraine faces today requires transformational actions that embrace the principles of sustainability and the elimination of the consequences of martial law, which, since the beginning of the full-scale intervention of the aggressor country, caused a break in the food chain between rural areas, with rational use of nature and subjects of food provision in the regions of the country. The purpose of the article is to study the theoretical and methodological aspects of the formation of household food supply in wartime conditions. It has been established that the key criterion of food security is not ensured in Ukraine today - the economic availability of food of the necessary volume and quality for all social groups of the population. The obstacle to this is the system of distribution of national income, which is discriminatory towards the majority of the country's population. Therefore, to ensure economic access to food for the entire population of our country, changes in the current model of Ukraine's economy are necessary. It was determined that for the period of 2023-2026, provided that the production of meat and meat products by the rural OTG of Ukraine increases by 10%, the total amount of resources of the agricultural sector of the economy will increase by 14.4%, the increase in the consumption fund will be 15.5%, which will lead to an increase in the general needs of the population for this type of agricultural products up to 7.1%. Accordingly, this will allow to increase the food self-sufficiency index of the agricultural sector from 0.65 to 0.70, respectively. Thus, in Ukraine, even in the conditions of a crisis military conflict, it is necessary to increase the aggregate income of households on the basis of a balanced socio-economic policy of the state.Summary. Today, Ukraine's food security is an important component of national security. The almost two-year war with the Russian Federation disrupted the sustainable production of basic food products and their availability to the population. Overcoming the complex challenges that Ukraine faces today requires transformational actions that embrace the principles of sustainability and the elimination of the consequences of martial law, which, since the beginning of the full-scale intervention of the aggressor country, caused a break in the food chain between rural areas, with rational use of nature and subjects of food provision in the regions of the country. The purpose of the article is to study the theoretical and methodological aspects of the formation of household food supply in wartime conditions. It has been established that the key criterion of food security is not ensured in Ukraine today - the economic availability of food of the necessary volume and quality for all social groups of the population. The obstacle to this is the system of distribution of national income, which is discriminatory towards the majority of the country's population. Therefore, to ensure economic access to food for the entire population of our country, changes in the current model of Ukraine's economy are necessary. It was determined that for the period of 2023-2026, provided that the production of meat and meat products by the rural OTG of Ukraine increases by 10%, the total amount of resources of the agricultural sector of the economy will increase by 14.4%, the increase in the consumption fund will be 15.5%, which will lead to an increase in the general needs of the population for this type of agricultural products up to 7.1%. Accordingly, this will allow to increase the food self-sufficiency index of the agricultural sector from 0.65 to 0.70, respectively. Thus, in Ukraine, even in the conditions of a crisis military conflict, it is necessary to increase the aggregate income of households on the basis of a balanced socio-economic policy of the state.

Income precarity and child and parent weight change during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional analysis of the Ontario Parent Survey

ObjectivesTo describe child and parent weight change during the pandemic, overall and by income precarity.DesignA cross-sectional online survey was conducted.SettingCaregivers of children 0–17 years of age living in Ontario, Canada,...

Time-Geographic Project of Household Food Provision: Conceptualization and a Pilot Case Study

Geographers and health researchers routinely analyze data on food-related behaviors to understand potential relationships between the food environment and diet. Analytical uncertainties arise, however, from discounting the sequential connections and household coordination of various food tasks. This study employed the time-geographic construct of the project, which is defined as a series of goal-oriented activities conducted by one or more individuals, to understand the composition and influencing factors of household food provision. To demonstrate the usefulness of the project concept, this study delineated how food activities were woven into a select couple’s daily life paths with the aid of sequence visualizations, and developed an analytical test case using time-use diaries of coupled adults living in Toronto, Canada. Ten dinner project archetypes were identified with distinct characteristics of activity composition and coordination. The study further explored how the dinner project archetypes were related to geographic food environments and meal consumption. By employing the project concept in research on food environments, the interconnectedness between various diet-related activities and diverse patterns of coordination between household members can be captured. Finally, a discussion on how the project perspective can improve the understanding of food environments and healthy eating was presented.

Effect of passive solar drying on food security in rural Mozambique

Achieving food security in Mozambique is critical, since 80% of the population cannot afford an adequate diet. While increasing agricultural production is a necessary effort to address this challenge, inadequate post-harvest treatment leads to storage losses and quality degradation, with repercussions for food security. The use of solar drying is promoted as a solution to provide efficient and reliable access to food preservation that improves the food security situation in rural communities. However, there is a lack of clear evidence on how the use or access to solar drying affects food security. This study identifies the determinants of farmers’ choice to use solar drying and evaluates the effect of a passive solar dryer on food security using survey data from 634 households. We allocated solar dryers to selected communities and all interested individuals belonging to these communities were eligible to use it. Propensity score matching and endogenous switching poisson regression are used to estimate the average effect. The use of solar drying with associated training significantly increases the food security status of participants by increasing household food availability, women’s dietary diversity, and months of adequate household food provision and by decreasing the household food insecurity access scale.

Food supply chain waste reduction for a circular economy in the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal study of New Zealand consumers

PurposeFood waste (FW) reduction, of which household wastage comprises a large fraction, has an important role in promoting the circular economy (CE). This study investigates how certain consumer traits impact household FW, particularly in the face of external shocks.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted a qualitative and longitudinal study, spanning three periods in New Zealand. A preliminary model is constructed from the outcomes of a survey with 178 participants. Then, the authors carried out 29 semi-structured interviews to refine the preliminary model and adapt it to the analysis of household waste behavior.FindingsDifferent segments of consumers have distinct response patterns in successive lockdowns, and these patterns impact household FW reduction and food supply chain (FSC) management. The key findings include (1) for government, quick responses to quash unhelpful rumors help to reduce public concerns around FSC interruption; (2) for retailers, the pandemic has hastened the growth of online shopping; being able to expand the distribution channel in a short time is a critical issue; and (3) for consumers, the experience of lockdown has different impacts on different groups of consumers. This variation of experience may either enhance or exacerbate FW in households.Originality/valueThis paper complements the existing literature on the FSC and contributes to household FW and CE literature by providing a framework that integrates external impacts, consumer segmentation to reflect on waste management, and the possible applications of the proposed framework.

Floodplain farming and maladaptation to extreme rainfall events in northern Ghana

ABSTRACT The floodplain of the Black Volta River traverses the Ghana-Burkina Faso international border and offers considerable potential for agriculture. Yet, it is a risk-filled landscape with acute vulnerability to flooding. This paper seeks to explain why agriculture in the floodplain remains so popular when it manifestly causes more problems. Data for the paper comes from empirical fieldwork using qualitative in-depth interviews (n = 68), which were analysed using a deductive coding approach. Overall, the findings suggest that mining-induced land displacement compels farmers to engage in floodplain agriculture despite heightened vulnerability to flooding. For landless women in particular, an additional pressure is gendered responsibilities in household food provisioning, as well as subjectivities linked to norms of being good wives, mothers, and daughters-in-law. To reduce agriculture’s vulnerability to flooding, farmers often raise artificial levees on the floodplain or alter fields to drain water more quickly. The maladaptive outcomes of these practices are assessed in the paper, including rebounding vulnerability, shifting vulnerability, and destroying common pool resources. Ultimately, the paper makes two broader contributions. First, it demonstrates the importance in maladaptation analysis of paying attention to gendered subjectivities and the intersection with other social categories that can create heightened vulnerability. Second, the paper emphasizes how the causal structures of vulnerability need to form the foundation upon which maladaptation experiences are examined.

Experiences of Food-Insecure Pregnant Women and Factors Influencing Their Food Choices

IntroductionFood insecurity (FI), an inadequate access to healthy, affordable food, is a public health concern primarily driven by material hardship. Optimal antenatal nutrition promotes best health outcomes for the mother and baby. Pregnant women experiencing FI are less able to access healthy foods, increasing the risk of complications such as gestational diabetes and preterm labour. Little is known about the experiences of food-insecure pregnant women in obtaining sufficient, nutritious food, their perceptions regarding antenatal nutrition and how this contributes to their food choices.MethodsThis qualitative study conducted from August to November 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, examined the experiences and coping strategies of food-insecure pregnant women, and the factors influencing their food choices. Seven English-speaking food-insecure pregnant women participated in semi-structured interviews. Interview transcripts were thematically analysed, informed by grounded theory methodology.ResultsThree themes were identified through analysis of the interviews related to strategies that managed household food supply, factors that influenced food choices, and experiences of pregnancy during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of a limited food budget, pregnancy symptoms, the cognitive overload that attends the FI experience, and the acute yet significant impact of the pandemic, food-insecure pregnant women in this study defaulted to cheap and convenient food choices despite acknowledging the importance of eating well for pregnancy.ConclusionFI during pregnancy is burdensome, relentless and undermines women’s wellbeing. Supportive strategies within antenatal healthcare settings are urgently required to deliver an equitable health response for vulnerable women.

Antibiotic use by backyard food animal producers in Ecuador: a qualitative study

BackgroundAntibiotics are increasingly used throughout the world in food animal production for controlling and preventing disease and for promoting growth. But this trend also has the potential for promoting antibiotic resistance, which represents a threat to human, animal, and environmental health. The use of antibiotics and the potential effects of antibiotic dependence has often been associated with large-scale food animal production. But rural households also engage in small-scale production, often operating literally in backyards. While some small-scale producers use veterinary antibiotics, many do not. This paper examines knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and agricultural practices (KAP) that represent an alternative to dependence on antibiotics.MethodsQualitative field research was based on four focus group discussions (FGDs) with non-indigenous backyard food animal producers in four communities near Quito, Ecuador and two FGDs with veterinarians. FGDs were supplemented by structured observations and key informant interviews. They were recorded with digital audio devices and transcriptions were analyzed independently by two researchers using a three-stage coding procedure. Open coding identifies underlying concepts, while axial coding develops categories and properties, and selective coding integrates the information in order to identify the key dimensions of the collective qualitative data.ResultsBackyard food animal producers in the Ecuadorian highlands generally do not use antibiotics while rearing small batches of animals and poultry for predominantly non-commercial household consumption. Instead, they rely on low cost traditional veterinary remedies. These practices are informed by their Andean history of agriculture and a belief system whereby physical activity is a holistic lifestyle through which people maintain their health by participating in the physical and spiritual environment.ConclusionsBackyard food animal producers in the Ecuadorian highlands implement complex strategies based on both economic calculations and sociocultural underpinnings that shape perceptions, attitudes, and practices. They use traditional veterinary remedies in lieu of antibiotics in most cases because limited production of food animals in small spaces contributes to a predictable household food supply, while at the same time conforming to traditional concepts of human and environmental health.

Understanding the drivers of food security among agriculture-based households in Gurué District, Central Mozambique

BackgroundThe prevalence of food insecurity in Mozambique is alarming, despite progress made during the 2010s. Several studies apply different proxy indicators of food security (FS) to assess the FS situation. However, these studies overlook the factors affecting FS, using only a single data point that results in an incomplete picture of FS. Food security is expected to fluctuate, being better and worse than what studies suggest. Using a sample of 296 households to assess FS, key drivers conditioning households’ capacity to achieve FS in Gurué District, Central Mozambique, are identified. Data were collected in the pre-harvest period and during the harvest period to capture relevant interseasonal variation of FS. Household FS is assessed using three standard indicators: Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS), Household Food Consumption Score (HFCS), and Months of Adequate Household Food Provisioning (MAHFP).ResultsEach household was classified into a specific FS status depending on the indicator applied. Generally, most households were classified as being severely or moderately food insecure during the pre-harvest season, while during the harvest season, medium and high levels of FS predominated. Nevertheless, varying outcomes were found depending on the indicator used to assess FS. MAHFP and HDDS are more related to the consumption of farm-sourced food, while HFCS responds more strongly to purchased food. Gender and age of the household head, geographic location, size and quality of land, staples production (especially cassava), livestock and crop diversity, as well as cash crops had a statistically significant effect on FS indicators.ConclusionsThe study concludes that the decision whether farmers should rely on staple foods production for increasing their FS status or specialize on cash crops production to generate income and buy food depends on the indicator used to assess FS, since each indicator captures a specific domain of food security. Thus, one central recommendation derived from our results is that policy makers should promote a balance between market-oriented agriculture and subsistence production to achieve FS.