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Measuring Food Security Using Respondents’ Perception of Food Consumption Adequacy

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Author Info
Mauro Migotto
Benjamin Davis (Agricultural and Development Economics Division, Food and Agriculture Organization)
Gero Carletto (Agricultural and Development Economics Division, Food and Agriculture Organization)
Kathleen Beegle

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Abstract

Food security is a complex and multi-dimensional phenomenon. As such, its measurement may entail and benefit from the combination of both “qualitative-subjective” and “quantitative-objective” indicators. Yet, the evidence on the external validity of subjective-type information is scarce, especially using representative household surveys. The aim of this paper is to compare information on self-perceived food consumption adequacy from the subjective modules of household surveys with standard quantitative indicators, namely calorie consumption, dietary diversity and anthropometry. Datasets from four countries are analyzed: Albania, Madagascar, Nepal and Indonesia. Simple descriptive statistics, correlation coefficients, contingency tables and multivariate regression show that the “subjective” indicator is at best poorly correlated with standard quantitative indicators. The paper concludes that while subjective food adequacy indicators may provide insight on the vulnerability dimension of food insecurity, they are too blunt an indicator for food insecurity targeting. An effort towards developing improved subjective food security modules that are contextually sensitive should go hand in hand with research into how to improve household survey data for food security measurement along other dimensions of the phenomenon, particularly calorie consumption.

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Paper provided by Agricultural and Development Economics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO - ESA) in its series Working Papers with number 05-10.

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Length: 40 pages
Date of creation: 2005
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Handle: RePEc:fao:wpaper:0510

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Related research
Keywords: Food security; Qualitative indicators; Quantitative indicators; Household surveys; Subjective perceptions of food adequacy.;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare and Poverty - - - General Welfare
I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
O57 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Comparative Studies of Countries
C19 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods: General - - - Other
C81 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Data Collection and Data Estimation Methodology; Computer Programs - - - Microeconomic Data

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Mauro Migotto & Benjamin Davis & Gero Carletto & Kathleen Beegle, 2005. "Measuring Food Security Using Respondents’ Perception of Food Consumption Adequacy," Working Papers 05-10, Agricultural and Development Economics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO - ESA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Gero Carletto & Benjamin Davis & Marco Stampini, 2005. "Familiar Faces, Familiar Places: The role of family networks and previous experience for Albanian migrants," Working Papers 05-03, Agricultural and Development Economics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO - ESA). [Downloadable!]
  3. Tarp, Finn, et al, 2002. "The Robustness of Poverty Profiles Reconsidered," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 51(1), pages 77-108, October.
    Other versions:
  4. Maxwell, Simon, 1996. "Food security: a post-modern perspective," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 155-170, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Hoddinott, John & Yohannes, Yisehac, 2002. "Dietary diversity as a food security indicator," FCND discussion papers 136, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). [Downloadable!]
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  6. Lokshin, Michael & Umapathi, Nithin & Paternostro, Stefano, 2004. "Robustness of subjective welfare analysis in a poor developing country - Madagascar 2001," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3191, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Bouis, Howarth E. & Haddad, Lawrence J., 1992. "Are estimates of calorie-income fxelasticities too high? : A recalibration of the plausible range," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(2), pages 333-364, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Pradhan, Menno & Ravallion, Martin, 1998. "Measuring poverty using qualitative perceptions of welfare," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2011, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  9. Chung, Kimberly & Haddad, Lawrence James & Ramakrishna, Jayashree & Riely, Frank Z., 1997. "Alternative approaches to locating the food insecure," FCND discussion papers 22, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). [Downloadable!]
  10. Morris, Saul Sutkover & Calogero, Carletto & Hoddinott, John & Christiaensen, Luc J. M., 1999. "Validity of rapid estimates of household wealth and income for health surveys in rural Africa," FCND discussion papers 72, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). [Downloadable!]
  11. Gero Carletto & Alberto Zezza, 2006. "Being poor, feeling poorer: Combining objective and subjective measures of welfare in Albania," The Journal of Development Studies, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 42(5), pages 739-760, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  12. Carlo Azzarri & Gero Carletto & Benjamin Davis & Alberto Zezza, 2006. "Monitoring Poverty Without Consumption Data : An Application Using the Albania Panel Survey," Eastern European Economics, M.E. Sharpe, Inc., vol. 44(1), pages 59-82, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  13. Ruel, Marie T., 2002. "Is dietary diversity an indicator of food security or dietary quality?," FCND discussion papers 140, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). [Downloadable!]
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  14. Menno Pradhan & Martin Ravallion, 2000. "Measuring Poverty Using Qualitative Perceptions Of Consumption Adequacy," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 82(3), pages 462-471, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Ravallion, Martin & Lokshin, Michael, 1999. "Subjective economic welfare," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2106, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Migotto, Mauro & Davis, Benjamin & Carletto, Gero & Beegle, Kathleen, 2006. "Measuring Food Security Using Respondents' Perception of Food Consumption Adequacy," Working Papers RP2006/88, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Molini, Vasco, 2006. "Food Security in Vietnam during the 1990s: The Empirical Evidence," Working Papers RP2006/67, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER). [Downloadable!]
  3. Pasquale Scaramozzino, 2006. "Measuring Vulnerability to Food Insecurity," Working Papers 06-12, Agricultural and Development Economics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO - ESA). [Downloadable!]
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