Do increasing prices affect food deprivation in the European Union?

Abstract

The rise of prices of agricultural commodities in global markets during 2007-2012 was followed by increased consumer food prices around the world. More expensive food may have an impact on consumer food access and thus on their welfare, not only in developing countries but also amongst the most vulnerable in developed countries. Using a longitudinal database from the Statistics on Income and Living Conditions and population-averaged models, we tested whether increasing food prices had an impact on household food deprivation in 26 European Union (EU) member states. Results revealed a significant relationship between food deprivation and the consumer food price index and disposable income. Households in the lowest income quintile in the member states recently acceded to the EU were the most vulnerable to food deprivation. Results also showed that low-income households in densely populated areas were more vulnerable to food deprivation. This should be taken into account when evaluating food assistance programmes that focus on the segments of the population most at risk of food deprivation.

Impact of Policy and Factor Intensity on Sustainable Value of European Agriculture: Exploring Trade-Offs of Environmental, Economic and Social Efficiency at the Regional Level

“…This observation was also confirmed by other studies (e.g., [62]), which asserted that providing CAP instruments for agriculture had a decisive influence on the increase in income in EU-12 countries and on a decrease in the disparities between the income of farmers and remuneration obtained in other occupations. Hence, agricultural policy is of key importance for reducing agricultural deprivation [63][64][65][66]. When it comes to the eco-efficiency thread, Grovermann et al [67] argued that innovative systems enabled by institutional help connected with production in agriculture increase overall efficiency.…”

Households’ Food Insecurity in the V4 Countries: Microeconometric Analysis

“…", which has a binary outcome (Yes/No). This indicator is used to capture food deprivation (García-Germán, Bardají and Garrido, 2018) or food insecurity in the EU (Loopstra et al, 2016). It has several advantages as a measure of food insecurity.…”

The Influence of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy on the Socio-Economic Sustainability of Farms (the Case of Poland)

“…Agriculture is characterized by seasonality, the scale of risk and uncertainty resulting from weather conditions, variable work intensity and cyclicality of production which have destabilizing effects both on agricultural income and profitability of agricultural production [36,38]. This is also confirmed by the results of studies of other authors in which, on the example of various groups, it was shown that agricultural policy is of key importance for reducing agricultural deprivation [39][40][41][42]. Thanks to the CAP, this is also reflected in the EU, which is confirmed by the results of our analyzes.…”