Headey Derek, Hirvonen Kalle, Hoddinott John
International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
The authors thank seminar participants at the Allied Social Science Association (ASSA) meetings in Philadelphia.
Am J Agric Econ. 2018 Jul 31;100(5):1302-1319. doi: 10.1093/ajae/aay053.
Stunting affects 160 million pre-school children globally with adverse life-long consequences. While work within nutritional science suggests that stunting in early childhood is associated with low intakes of animal-sourced foods (ASFs), this topic has received little attention from economists. We attempt to redress this omission through an analysis of 130,432 children aged 6-23 months from 49 countries. We document distinctive patterns of ASF consumption among children in different regions. We find evidence of strong associations between stunting and a generic ASF consumption indicator, as well as dairy, meat/fish, and egg consumption indicators, and evidence that consuming multiple ASFs is more advantageous than any single ASF. We explore why ASF consumption is low but also so variable across countries. Non-tradable ASFs (fresh milk, eggs) are a very expensive source of calories in low-income countries and caloric prices of these foods are strongly associated with children's consumption patterns. Other demand-side factors are also important, but the strong influence of prices implies an important role for agricultural policies-in production, marketing and trade-to improve the accessibility and affordability of ASFs in poorer countries.
发育迟缓影响着全球1.6亿学龄前儿童，并会产生终身不良后果。虽然营养科学领域的研究表明，幼儿发育迟缓与动物性食物（ASF）摄入量低有关，但这一话题几乎未受到经济学家的关注。我们通过对来自49个国家的130432名6至23个月大的儿童进行分析，试图弥补这一疏漏。我们记录了不同地区儿童食用ASF的独特模式。我们发现发育迟缓与一般ASF消费指标、乳制品、肉类/鱼类和蛋类消费指标之间存在密切关联，并且有证据表明食用多种ASF比单一食用任何一种ASF更有益。我们探讨了为什么ASF消费量低且各国之间差异如此之大。在低收入国家，非贸易ASF（鲜牛奶、鸡蛋）是非常昂贵的热量来源，这些食物的热量价格与儿童的消费模式密切相关。其他需求侧因素也很重要，但价格的强烈影响意味着农业政策在生产、营销和贸易方面可以发挥重要作用，以提高较贫穷国家获取和负担得起ASF的能力。
