The Cost of Nutritious Food in South Asia

Dizon, Felipe ; Herforth, Anne

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: FOOD PRICES;    DIETS;    NUTRITION;    FOOD SECURITY;    NUTRITIOUS FOOD PRICE INDEX;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-8557
RP-ID  :  WPS8557

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

The high cost of nutritious foods canworsen poor diets and nutrition outcomes especially amonglow-income households. Yet little is known about the spatialand temporal patterns of the cost of nutritious diets inSouth Asia, where malnutrition in multiple forms remainshigh. Using existing food price data from Sri Lanka,Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India, two methods are applied toassess the affordability of nutritious foods: Cost of aRecommended Diet (CoRD) and Nutritious Food Price Index(NPI). The analysis finds that the cost of a nutritious dietis 38 percent higher in Sri Lanka using CoRD compared to thecost of a (calorie-based) diet that meets basic food needs,and 15 percent higher in Afghanistan. In addition, CoRDvaries across cities due to variability in the price ofdairy and vegetables. Comparison of the NPI and the foodConsumer Price Index (CPI) indicates that, for somecountries, the price of a nutritious food basket varies moreby season and has been increasing at a faster rate than theprice of a typical food basket. This phenomenon is largelydue to the variable cost of vegetables.