Approximately 2 billion people around the world suffer from some form of undernutrition, sparking debate among researchers and policy makers about how to improve the diets and nutrition of vulnerable populations.
new study The paper, published in the journal Nature Food, challenges conventional wisdom that farmers’ production of crop diversity (food production diversity, or FPD) is the main path to addressing nutrient deficiencies. .
So what is the relationship between dietary diversity and individual and household nutrition? And can market access solve nutritional deficiencies?
What does new research show?
The first-of-its-kind study by Germany’s Center for Development Studies (ZEF) at the University of Bonn looked at data on approximately 90,000 African households in Ethiopia, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Uganda from 2008 to 2022. collected.
The group recommends that undernourishment can be better addressed by building better roads to access markets in local towns and cities.
“We show that regional production diversity is important and can replace the production diversity of individual farms in many situations,” ZEF’s Professor Matin Kaim told Al Jazeera. spoke.
“This is good news because, rather than forcing individual small farms to produce more seeds, we can ensure that additional crops and livestock species are produced elsewhere in the region (and then distributed through local markets). “It’s much easier to do that,” he explained.
The researchers studied detailed data on the diversity of crops and animals managed by farmers, as well as the types of food consumed by each household. In this study, we use the Home Diet Diversity Score (HDDS) to measure the nutritional diversity of a family’s diet by aggregating the individual food groups consumed within a week. The index provides insight into the range and quality of food consumed by households, providing a snapshot of dietary and nutritional status.
Many of the farmers surveyed were small-scale growers, known as smallholders or limited-scale farmers.
The main questions the researchers wanted to answer were whether producing a variety of crops and animal species among smallholders is the most effective way to address nutritional deficiencies, and whether these farms The question was whether households with access to the system were eating a more balanced diet.
Unfortunately, as research shows, the results are mixed.
“Producing too many different things on each farm means farmers are forced into subsistence and lose out on the benefits of division of labor. But we also need to improve market access, such as infrastructure. It also shows that improvement is very important,” Keim said.
What are the limitations of older research on food diversity?
Existing studies investigating the relationship between food production diversity and dietary diversity have several limitations.
As noted in the Nature Food study, focusing on farm-level production diversity and a single country highlights the potential impact of broader-scale diversity on household dietary patterns in different countries. effects are overlooked.
Addressing these shortcomings could help researchers better understand the complex interactions between agricultural production and nutritional outcomes. The diversity of local farms led to a more balanced diet for some households, but the impact was minor.
“Small-scale agricultural production in Africa tends to be highly diverse anyway. Ensuring good access to local and regional markets is more important than further improving the diversity of individual farms.” , said ZEF researcher Thanh Tung Nguyen, who conducted the study in collaboration with Qaim.
“These markets allow farmers not only to sell their surplus food, but also to buy food that is in short supply,” he said in public. statement.
Poor infrastructure remains a major obstacle, as poor roads can increase travel times and potentially cause products to deteriorate or be damaged during transport.
Proximity to urban centers, an indicator of market access costs in rural Africa, had a negative impact in all six countries. According to the study, the average household lives about 31 km (19 miles) from the next urban center.
How can we better solve food insecurity?
The study suggests that part of the problem is the ability of local farmers to produce suitable crops and raise suitable animals, known as FPD. However, FPD is not the only challenge in household diets, as measured by the household dietary diversity score (HDDS).
“Weather shocks, defined as the occurrence of droughts, floods, hurricanes, or related extreme events during the past 12 months, negatively impact HDDS,” the study said.
“Several other socio-economic characteristics are positively associated with HDDS: Producing non-food cash crops such as cotton, coffee, tea, and tobacco on your own farm has a positive impact on your cash income. It seems to be effective and contribute to increasing the diversity of household diets.”
“The issue of nutritional resilience to climate change and other types of shocks, and the role of homegrown production and markets in this regard, is still not well understood,” researcher Kaim said.
The researchers said the seasonality of certain fruits and vegetables should receive more attention. To maximize agricultural efficiency and economic potential, farmers should prioritize growing crops that thrive in specific regions and soil conditions, optimizing both productivity and profitability. Research is recommended.
Efforts are currently underway to address infrastructure food accessibility issues. In 2016, the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), which is dedicated to delivering humanitarian aid and development projects, launched a $55 million (GBP 44 million) spur project in South Sudan to improve trade and food security. did.
In November, the Nyamler Bridge was handed over to Sudan, along with 44 km (27 miles) of feeder roads, including clean drinking water stations and sanitation systems in northern and western Bahr el Ghazal states. The construction of the bridge affected and was aimed at providing relief to 1.2 million people in the region.
