The Price of Homemade Street Food in Central Asia and Eastern Europe: Is There a Relation with Its Nutritional Value?

Abstract

The aim was to describe the price of homemade street foods in four cities of Central Asia and Eastern Europe and to analyze its association with energy density, macronutrients, sodium and potassium contents. Cross-sectional evaluations of street food vending sites were conducted in Dushanbe, Tajikistan (n = 562), Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (n = 384), Almaty, Kazakhstan (n = 236) and Chișinău, Moldova (n = 89) in 2016–2017. Information on the homemade street foods available, including price, was systematically collected; the most commonly available foods (n = 64) were sampled for chemical analysis. Prices were converted to international dollars ($) and expressed as $/serving, $/100 g and $/100 kcal. The median street food price was $1.00/serving, $0.85/100 g and $0.33/100 kcal. Traditional foods were cheaper per 100 g than the westernized ($0.77 vs. $1.00, p = 0.011). For each unit increase in energy density (kcal/g), the homemade street foods were $0.12 cheaper per 100 kcal and $0.11 more expensive per 100 g. The carbohydrate content was negatively associated with price per 100 kcal, while total fat, monounsaturated, saturated and trans-fatty acids content were positively associated with price per 100 g. Energy-dense homemade street foods were the cheapest. Further insight on food preparation might clarify the association between carbohydrates and monounsaturated fatty acids content and street food price.

Patterns of Street Food Purchase in Cities From Central Asia

“…Sweet pastries and confectionery were most frequently purchased between 13:00 and 15:00 which may as well correspond to an after lunch time period, suggesting that some of these foods may have also been consumed in the context of a dessert. However, we cannot exclude the possibility of sweet pastries being consumed as the main meal, since these foods are fulfilling and have a low cost per calorie (37), and in contexts of economic restriction, they may be seen by consumers as a good option to supply energy needs. Furthermore, food-based dietary guidelines and nutrition education programmes are still lacking in these countries, so there may be a lack of knowledge about which foods are suitable to consume at different meals throughout the day.…”