| Abstract: | Nutrient demand consumption behaviour has been investigated by a number of researchers. One aspect of such behaviour that has been largely ignored is the productive use of available nutrient resources within households. The purpose of this paper was to examine the effects of various socio-economic and demographic variables on the productive use of selected dietary components. Household production provided the theoretical framework for studying nutrient productivity within households. From this framework, average productivity ratios for calories, protein and fat were developed. Data for the empirical analyses were taken from the 1977–78 Nationwide Food Consumption Survey. The results indicate that an average of 66–80% of these nutrient resources that were available to households were actually consumed. Households appear to make more productive use of their available protein resources relative to calories and fat. The effects of theoretically justified exogenous variables on the productivity of these dietary components were also examined. The results have implications for marketers, as well as educators who work with families in managing their resources. |
