Measuring Prevalence, Profiling and Evaluating the Potential of Policy Impacts using Two Food Security Indicators in Guatemala

Food security is a multi-dimensional concept and requires a set of indicators to properly measure it. However, single food security indicators are often used without any attention to the food security dimension in which they operate. The misuse of individual food security indicators can have important implications for policy design and implementation. The main objective of this study is to compare two alternative food security indicators: 1) to measure the prevalence of food insecurity in a country, 2) to conduct food security profiling assessments, and 3) to evaluate the potential impact of a cash transfer policy. The two food security indicators considered are the Latin America and Caribbean Food Security Scale, and a food security indicator based on daily per capita food energy available calculated using household expenditure surveys. Data for the study comes from the 2011 Survey of Living Standards from Guatemala. Our results indicate large discrepancies in the estimated prevalence of food insecurity in the country. The regions with the highest levels of incidence of food insecurity, the profile of food insecure households, and the simulated potential impact of a cash transfer policy also differ depending on the indicator used.