Patterns of Food Consumption and Nutrition in Indonesia: An Analysis of the National Socioeconomic Survey, 1978

摘要

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the level of consumption of food and of nutrients for the Indonesian population; to identify population groups with nutrient deficiencies; to identify the major sources of different nutrients; and to estimate income and price elasticities of demand for both foods and nutrients. The estimation of income and price elasticities of demand for food and nutrients is based on a household utility-maximization model from which the household's demand for food and hence nutrients is derived. For estimation purposes the double-logarithmic function is used, with quantities of food, calories and nutrients as dependent variables. The paper concludes that there is wide scope for nutrition policies based on changes in incomes and relative prices, as food and nutrition consumption respond rather dramatically to such changes. It is not clear at this stage how households, respond to income and price changes in terms of the quality of foodstuffs they purchase, and what effect this has on nutrition. As incomes rise, the dependency on rice increases as well. The data also strongly suggest that inadequate diets are prevalent among the better-off and the better-educated as well. Hence, alleviating malnutrition in Indonesia is not just a matter of raising levels of income but also of nutrition education.