HOUSEHOLD FOOD CONSUMPTION: THE INFLUENCE OF HOUSEHOLD CHARACTERISTICS

This paper reports an attempt to identify the effects of various household characteristives on household food consumption. The analysis was based on National Food Survey (NFS) data for Great Britain for the calendar year 1982. Consumption (per person per week) of various food items was related to each of the main household characteristics on which information is collected in the course of the Survey-location (both country/region and type of area), income (generally of the head of the household), household composition, age of housewife, housing tenure and freezer ownership. The results indicated that all these variables are important in the explanation of households' food consumption patterns.     

Away-from-Home and At-Home Beef Consumption in the United States

Logit models are developed to measure the effect of socioeconomic and demographic factors on the probability of consuming beef in the United States. The analyses are done in both the away from home and at home markets using the 1987-88 National Food Consumption Survey of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Factors that significantly affect the likelihood of eating beef include: race, seasonality, urbanization, ethnicity, household size, sex, age, and income.     

Is off-farm income reforming the farm? Evidence from Mexico

Does access to off-farm income complement or compete with agricultural production? This article explores the effect of off-farm income on agricultural production activities, using data from the 2003 Mexico National Rural Household Survey. We first discuss the theoretical conditions under which access to off-farm income may influence production in an agricultural household model. Instrumental-variable (IV) estimation methods are then used to test whether agricultural production activities, technologies, and input use differ between households with and without access to off-farm income. We find that off-farm income has a negative effect on agricultural output and the use of family labor on the farm, but a positive impact on the demand for purchased inputs. There is also a slight efficiency gain in households with access to off-farm income. Findings offer insights into how household production evolves as rural households increasingly engage in off-farm income activities.     

Estimates of Food Demand Elasticities for Great Britain: 1972–1994

This paper reports the results of the estimation of Almost Ideal Demand Systems (AIDS) for UK food demand using time series data from the National Food Survey. A Bayesian approach is used to impose curvature restrictions in the model. The aim is to obtain estimates of Hicksian, Marshallian and expenditure demand elasticities for UK food which are fully consistent with static optimisation by consumers. Overall, the results concur with expectations as aggregate food demand is both price and income inelastic and individual food categories are mostly price and income inelastic. The notable exception being meat, specifically pork, beef and chicken.     

The Varying Impacts of Agricultural Support Programs on U.S. Farm Household Consumption

Farm households are economic agents whose income is derived from farm, off-farm, and government sources. This article uses farm-level data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) and recent advances in the econometric theory of dynamic pseudo-panels to show that farm households consume various sources of income differently at the margin. Particular attention is given to a specific type of lump-sum government transfer payment intended to be decoupled from (independent of) farm production decisions. The results suggest that relatively decoupled government subsidies have a greater marginal effect on farm household consumption than subsidies that are tied to market conditions.     

Food Stamp Program Participation and Food Insecurity: An Instrumental Variables Approach

The relationship between Food Stamp Program (FSP) participation and household food insecurity (FI) is investigated using data from the 1996–1997 National Food Stamp Program Survey. Endogeneity of FSP participation is accommodated with an instrumental variables approach. In contrast to other findings reported in the literature, results suggest participation in the FSP reduces the severity of FI. Sociodemographic variables play important roles in FSP participation and FI. Underreporting of FSP participation and limited observations of food-insecure households in previous studies may have also been factors.     

The relationship between food consumption, age and gender over time in Britain

This paper investigates the relationship between nutrition and socio-economic status among British youths. It describes the dynamics of consumption over age and time using data from the British National Food Survey (NFS) covering the period 1975-2000. Daily calories-age relationships for men and women are estimated by solving a non-linear least square model with a roughness penalty function approach. Focusing on young age groups, trends of consumption over the 25-year period of study and the cohorts effect have been explored across three classes of age. Finally, an exploration of specific trend variations in eating habits has been implemented controlling for income distribution.     

Understanding Differences in Self-Reported Expenditures between Household Scanner Data and Diary Survey Data: A Comparison of Homescan and Consumer Expenditure Survey

Household scanner data contain rich information on household demographics and transactions in actual markets over a long time period. To more fully understand the characteristics of these data, we conducted an analysis to determine whether household expenditures in the Nielsen Homescan panel are similar to the Bureau of Labor Statistic's Consumer Expenditure Diary Survey. We found that many differences in reported expenditures across the two datasets can be explained by such household demographics as female head, income, and household size, for example. The largest degrees of discrepancies across datasets occur for food categories containing more random-weight foods without universal product codes.     

农户参与林业碳汇意愿及影响因素动态分析——以云南省凤庆县、镇康县为例

运用农户调查数据,采用计量经济学分析方法,建立模型对农户参与意愿的影响因素进行了动态分析。结果显示,在项目涉及区,文化程度,家庭劳动力人数,家庭人均收入,林业收入占家庭收入比例,农户环保意识,对碳汇林未来经济预期六个变量对农户的参与意愿影响显著;在非项目涉及区,文化程度,林业收入占家庭收入比例,林地面积,农户环保意识,对碳汇林未来经济预期六个变量对农户的参与意愿影响显著。针对存在的问题,提出提高林业碳汇补偿标准、开展农户教育培训活动、拓展农户收入来源的建议。     

简约的PAMS模型在中国的应用

该文介绍了以2001年中国农村住户汇总数据为基础的简约的PAMS模型(Poverty Analysis Macroeconomic Simulator)在中国的应用。PAMS是一个可以用于模拟宏观经济政策或震动对贫困和分配的影响的模型框架。该模型使用EViews软件和代表宏观经济的一般均衡模型,通过实现CGE模型与贫困模拟器的链接,来模拟政策对贫困的影响。将私人收入作为主要的链接变量,根据多部门的实际收入的变化来确定私人收入的变化。     

Does participation in the conservation reserve program impact the economic well‐being of farm households?

This study uses U.S. farm household survey data to examine how participation in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) affects farm household economic well-being. Further, the study also examines the effects of CRP participation on farm household consumption, income, and imputed savings. In contrast to previous studies that assume the relationships are homogenous across the population, quantile regression is used to investigate the association between CRP participation across the entire distribution of farm household consumption and income. Empirical findings suggest that the effect of CRP participation on household economic well-being differs across the income and consumption distribution. For households in the lower percentiles of the distribution, the CRP participation is associated with an increase in household consumption, but a decrease in farm household income and savings. In contrast, farm households at the median and higher income and consumption quantiles, participation in CRP is associated with lower levels of household consumption and income, but with higher levels of savings.     

Technological change and agricultural household income distribution: theory and evidence from China

This article applies a general equilibrium model to analyse the impact of new rice technology on household income and uses agricultural household survey data from China to test the implications of this model. It is shown that, when a new rice technology becomes available, the adopting household will reallocate resources to increase rice production and reduce the production of other goods. Meanwhile, the non-adopting households will do the opposite. Thus, the income from rice becomes increasingly concentrated in the adopting households and income from non-rice becomes increasingly concentrated in the non-adopting households. If only one source of income is examined, the introduction of new rice technology increases the inequality of income distribution in rural areas. But, if the total household income is examined, the distributional inequality is mitigated.     

中国农户土地租佃行为实证研究

本文利用福建省和黑龙江省的农户调查样本数据，通过建立土地租佃行为的经济计量模型，从微观层面定量分析了影响农户土地租佃行为的各种因素。计量结果表明，农户土地租佃行为受到户主年龄、户主是否接受过专业技术培训、家庭劳动力人数、人均纯收入、非农收入比重、农户是否饲养役畜、交易成本等多方面因素的影响，并随着这些因素的变化而不断变化。     

Urban water demand with fixed volumetric charging in a large municipality: the case of Brisbane,Australia*

This paper uses suburb‐level quarterly data to model residential water demand in Brisbane, Australia, from 1998 to 2003. In this system, residential consumption is charged using a fixed annual service fee with no water entitlement followed by a fixed volumetric charge per kilolitre. Water demand is specified as average quarterly household water consumption and the demand characteristics include the marginal price of water, household income and size, and the number of rainy and warm days. The findings not only confirm residential water as price and income inelastic, but also that the price and income elasticity of demand in owner‐occupied households is higher than in rented households. The results also show that weather, particularly summer months and the number of rainy days, exerts a strong influence on residential water consumption.     

福建省农户分化对林地流转行为的影响研究

基于集体林权制度改革后福建省10个县(市)274户农户的抽样调查数据,运用二元Logistic回归模型,分别建立农户林地转入模型、转出模型,实证检验农户分化对林地流转的影响。研究将农户分化分为农户收入水平上的分化和农户职业上的分化。研究表明:农户分化对农户林地流转行为影响显著,其中农户收入水平对福建省农户的林地转入行为在统计上有显著的负向影响,同时,对农户林地转出行为也有负向显著的影响;农户职业分化对农户林地转入行为有显著的负向影响,却对农户林地转出有正向影响。基于研究提出以城乡发展一体化推进林地流转、建立林地流转市场、建立健全林地流转保障体系、完善林地产权管理制度、合理引导林地租赁等建议。     

失地农民是自愿还是非自愿退出劳动力市场——基于珠江三角洲的实证研究

本文采用珠三角地区失地农民就业情况的调查数据,运用Logit模型和Multinomial Logit模型对失地农民自愿失业、非自愿失业以及非农就业行为进行实证分析。研究表明,家庭收入以及集体经济分红收入等非劳动收入较高是失地农民退出劳动力市场的主要原因;而对于非自愿性失业的失地农民,年龄、健康和非农工作经验等人力资本低下是他们未能就业的主要原因。     

Determinants of economic well-being among U.S. farm operator households

Participation in government programs has a mild impact on the economic well‐being of U.S. farm households. Major factors that determine farm household prosperity are the primary operator's education level and ethnicity, education level of the spouse, and other characteristics such as forward purchasing of inputs, use of contract shipping of products, having a succession plan, farm ownership, and location in a metro area. This article uses the 2001 Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) as well as relative and an absolute measure to assess U.S. farm households' economic well‐being. The relative measure compares the income and wealth position of farm households relative to median income and median wealth of the general population. The absolute measure adds annualized wealth to a farm household's income.     

Livelihood roles of cattle and prospects for alternative land uses at the wildlife/livestock interface in South Africa

The emergence of wildlife ranching as an alternative land use option to agriculture, in Transfrontier Conservation Areas (TFCAs), has cast renewed interest on the role of cattle farming in rural livelihoods in areas close to wildlife parks. This study analysed the contribution of cattle to livelihoods and relationships between cattle and potential wildlife land uses in rural areas near Kruger National Park. Data were collected through household surveys, key informant interviews and community workshops. About 11% of households studied owned cattle, and cattle income constituted 29% of total household income. Benefits from cattle were also derived by households without cattle. About 71% of households had at least three sources of income, reflecting diversity of livelihoods. Wildlife related land uses were perceived by some households as threatening cattle production, whilst others viewed them as opportunities for alternative livelihoods. We conclude that cattle production has important livelihood roles, but is not sufficient as a driver of economic development in these areas. Incentives to encourage diversification of livelihoods at the wildlife/livestock interface, with possibilities for rural communities to explore wildlife based land uses should be put in place. In addition, land use policy and planning in such areas should focus on creating institutional mechanisms through which programmes integrating conservation and rural development goals can benefit rural communities.     

The Impact of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children on Child Health

Data from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey are used to analyze the effect of the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program and other factors on the health of U.S. preschool children. Ordered probit equations are estimated for the physician's overall evaluation of the child's health. The WIC Program has a significant positive impact on the overall health of children. In particular, children in households participating in WIC are significantly more likely to be in excellent health. Increased household income also improves their health.     

贸易自由化对中国食物消费不平等的影响与路径研究——基于多元多重中介效应模型的检验

随着经济发展,人们生活水平不断提高,中国人均食物消费量不断提高,但食物消费不平等问题依然比较突出.本文基于贸易自由化的角度,引入价格和收入两个中介变量,利用中国家庭收入项目调查数据及其他相关数据,通过多元多重中介效应模型,从理论和实证上分析了贸易自由化对中国食物消费不平等的影响.研究发现,贸易自由化不仅可通过提高中国居...