Agricultural and Socioeconomic Factors Associated with Farmer Household Dietary Diversity in India: A Comparative Study of Visakhapatnam and Sonipat

Sukhwinder Singh (), Nikhil Srinivasapura Venkateshmurthy, Kerry Ann Brown, Avinav Prasad Maddury, Rajesh Khatkar, Prashant Jarhyan, Dorairaj Prabhakaran and Sailesh Mohan
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Sukhwinder Singh: Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi 110016, India
Nikhil Srinivasapura Venkateshmurthy: Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi 110016, India
Kerry Ann Brown: College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4PY, UK
Avinav Prasad Maddury: Public Health Foundation of India, Gurgaon 122002, India
Rajesh Khatkar: Public Health Foundation of India, Gurgaon 122002, India
Prashant Jarhyan: Public Health Foundation of India, Gurgaon 122002, India
Dorairaj Prabhakaran: Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi 110016, India
Sailesh Mohan: Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi 110016, India

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 4, 1-17

Abstract: Using primary data from 479 farmer households, this study examined the associations between agricultural and socioeconomic factors and farmer household dietary diversity in Visakhapatnam and Sonipat. Cropping intensity was positively associated with farmers’ household dietary diversity score (HDDS), suggesting that higher cropping intensity may expand the gross cropped area and improve food security among subsistence farmers. Distance to food markets was also significantly associated with farmer HDDS, which suggests that market integration with rural households can improve farmer HDDS in Visakhapatnam. In Sonipat, wealth index had a positive association with farmer HDDS, targeting the income pathway by improving farmer HDDS in this region. Considering the relative contribution of these factors, distance to food markets, cropping intensity, and crop diversity were the three most important factors affecting farmer HDDS in Visakhapatnam, whereas wealth index, cropping intensity, and distance to food markets emerged as the top three important factors contributing to farmer HDDS in Sonipat. Our study concludes that the associations between agricultural and socioeconomic factors and farmer HDDS are complex but context- and location-specific; therefore, considering the site- and context-specific circumstances, different connections to HDDS in India can be found to better support policy priorities on the ground.

Keywords: agriculture; nutrition; crop diversity; household dietary diversity score; India (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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