Analysing the Scope of Kitchen Gardens in Achieving Dietary Diversity and Food Security in Rural Households for Resilient and Sustainable Food Systems

Abstract

Aim: The study aims to identify the scope of kitchen gardens or nutrition gardens in rural households in Tamil Nadu in achieving dietary diversity and food security. Currently, only a few existing studies analyse the link between kitchen gardens and dietary diversity. The study aims to address this gap.
 Study Design: Exploratory study.
 Place of Study: Tiruvallur and Coimbatore districts, Tamil Nadu, India during December 2022.
 Methodology: The study was conducted among 270 rural household heads selected through a stratified random sampling method. An index validated by Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) and FANTA was used to measure Household Dietary Diversity.
 Results: The results show there was a significant decrease in dietary diversity among the households. It was also identified that promoting kitchen gardens among poor households can improve food security.
 Conclusion: The study suggests suitable policy measures tailored to the local agricultural system to scale up kitchen gardening as a viable model for a resilient food system. Future research could be done to assess the impact of nutritive gardens on household food consumption patterns and food security.