Factors Associated with Seasonal Food Insecurity among Small-Scale Subsistence Farming Households in Rural Honduras

Warren Dodd, Marvin Gómez Cerna, Paola Orellena, Sally Humphries, Margaux L. Sadoine, David Zombré, Kate Zinszer, Amy Kipp and Donald C. Cole
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Warren Dodd: School of Public Health and Health Systems, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
Marvin Gómez Cerna: La Fundación para la Investigación Participativa con Agricultores de Honduras (FIPAH), La Ceiba M5S 2E8, Honduras
Paola Orellena: La Fundación para la Investigación Participativa con Agricultores de Honduras (FIPAH), La Ceiba M5S 2E8, Honduras
Sally Humphries: Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada
Margaux L. Sadoine: Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Montreal, Montréal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada
David Zombré: International Program Evaluation Unit, Centre for Global Child Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 2L3, Canada
Kate Zinszer: Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Montreal, Montréal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada
Amy Kipp: School of Public Health and Health Systems, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
Donald C. Cole: Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5T 3M7, Canada

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 3, 1-16

Abstract: In the context of climate change, a nutritional transition, and increased pressures to migrate internally and internationally, this study examined the relationship between seasonal food insecurity and demographic, socioeconomic, and agricultural production factors among small-scale subsistence farmers in rural northern Honduras. Anchored by a partnership with the Fundación para la Investigación Participativa con Agricultores de Honduras (FIPAH) and the Yorito Municipal Health Centre, a cross-sectional household survey was administered in Yorito, Honduras, in July 2014. The study population included 1263 individuals from 248 households across 22 rural communities. A multivariate mixed effects negative binomial regression model was built to investigate the relationship between the self-reported number of months without food availability and access from subsistence agriculture in the previous year (August 2013–July 2014) and demographic, socioeconomic, and agricultural production variables. This study found a lengthier ‘lean season’ among surveyed household than previously documented in Honduras. Overall, 62.2% (95% confidence interval (CI): [59.52, 64.87]) of individuals experienced at least four months of insufficient food in the previous year. Individuals from poorer and larger households were more likely to experience insufficient food compared to individuals from wealthier and smaller households. Additionally, individuals from households that produced both maize and beans were less likely to have insufficient food compared to individuals from households that did not grow these staple crops (prevalence ratio (PR) = 0.83; 95% CI: [0.69, 0.99]). Receiving remittances from a migrant family member did not significantly reduce the prevalence of having insufficient food. As unpredictable crop yields linked to climate change and extreme weather events are projected to negatively influence the food security and nutrition outcomes of rural populations, it is important to understand how demographic, socioeconomic, and agricultural production factors may modify the ability of individuals and households engaged in small-scale subsistence agriculture to respond to adverse shocks.

Keywords: food access; food availability; food stability; small-scale subsistence agriculture; rural livelihoods; poverty; seasonality; migration; Central America (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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