Brian G Luckett1, Fabrice A J DeClerck2, Jessica Fanzo3, Adrienne R Mundorf4, Donald Rose4. 1. 1School of Social Work,Tulane University,127 Elk Place,New Orleans,LA 70112,USA. 2. 2Agrobiodiversity and Ecosystem Service Program,Bioversity International,Montpellier,France. 3. 3Institute of Human Nutrition,Columbia University,New York,NY,USA. 4. 4Department of Global Community Health and Behavioral Sciences,Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine,New Orleans,LA,USA.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Dietary diversity is associated with nutrient adequacy and positive health outcomes but indicators to measure diversity have focused primarily on consumption, rather than sustainable provisioning of food. The Nutritional Functional Diversity score was developed by ecologists to describe the contribution of biodiversity to sustainable diets. We have employed this tool to estimate the relative contribution of home production and market purchases in providing nutritional diversity to agricultural households in Malawi and examine how food system provisioning varies by time, space and socio-economic conditions. DESIGN: A secondary analysis of nationally representative household consumption data to test the applicability of the Nutritional Functional Diversity score. SETTING: The data were collected between 2010 and 2011 across the country of Malawi. SUBJECTS: Households (n 11 814) from predominantly rural areas of Malawi. RESULTS: Nutritional Functional Diversity varied demographically, geographically and temporally. Nationally, purchased foods contributed more to household nutritional diversity than home produced foods (mean score=17·5 and 7·8, respectively). Households further from roads and population centres had lower overall diversity (P<0·01) and accessed relatively more of their diversity from home production than households closer to market centres (P<0·01). Nutritional diversity was lowest during the growing season when farmers plant and tend crops (P<0·01). CONCLUSIONS: The present analysis demonstrates that the Nutritional Functional Diversity score is an effective indicator for identifying populations with low nutritional diversity and the relative roles that markets, agricultural extension and home production play in achieving nutritional diversity. This information may be used by policy makers to plan agricultural and market-based interventions that support sustainable diets and local food systems.
OBJECTIVE: Dietary diversity is associated with nutrient adequacy and positive health outcomes but indicators to measure diversity have focused primarily on consumption, rather than sustainable provisioning of food. The Nutritional Functional Diversity score was developed by ecologists to describe the contribution of biodiversity to sustainable diets. We have employed this tool to estimate the relative contribution of home production and market purchases in providing nutritional diversity to agricultural households in Malawi and examine how food system provisioning varies by time, space and socio-economic conditions. DESIGN: A secondary analysis of nationally representative household consumption data to test the applicability of the Nutritional Functional Diversity score. SETTING: The data were collected between 2010 and 2011 across the country of Malawi. SUBJECTS: Households (n 11 814) from predominantly rural areas of Malawi. RESULTS: Nutritional Functional Diversity varied demographically, geographically and temporally. Nationally, purchased foods contributed more to household nutritional diversity than home produced foods (mean score=17·5 and 7·8, respectively). Households further from roads and population centres had lower overall diversity (P<0·01) and accessed relatively more of their diversity from home production than households closer to market centres (P<0·01). Nutritional diversity was lowest during the growing season when farmers plant and tend crops (P<0·01). CONCLUSIONS: The present analysis demonstrates that the Nutritional Functional Diversity score is an effective indicator for identifying populations with low nutritional diversity and the relative roles that markets, agricultural extension and home production play in achieving nutritional diversity. This information may be used by policy makers to plan agricultural and market-based interventions that support sustainable diets and local food systems.
Authors: Carl Lachat; Jessica E Raneri; Katherine Walker Smith; Patrick Kolsteren; Patrick Van Damme; Kaat Verzelen; Daniela Penafiel; Wouter Vanhove; Gina Kennedy; Danny Hunter; Francis Oduor Odhiambo; Gervais Ntandou-Bouzitou; Bernard De Baets; Disna Ratnasekera; Hoang The Ky; Roseline Remans; Céline Termote Journal: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A Date: 2017-12-18 Impact factor: 11.205
Authors: Paul Eze Eme; Jeroen Douwes; Nicholas Kim; Sunia Foliaki; Barbara Burlingame Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2019-04-02 Impact factor: 3.390