Philippine E-Journals

Consumption Of Secondary Food Crops By Low- And High-Income Households

Jose M. Alkuino Jr.

 

Abstract:

The study attempted to identify the kinds of secondary food crops consumed by households when the normally consumed staple food is scarce or when such households experience an income squeeze. One thousand two hundred households in the Visayas region were included in the survey. The respondents were divided into high- and low-income groups based on the median income of the group. Four secondary food crops, namely: sweet potato, plantain banana, cassava and taro were usually bought by respondents to supplement their staple food consumption. In general, more respondents in the low-income group bought plantain bananas than those who bought sweet potato and vice versa in the high-income group. Low-income households showed higher preference for cassava than high-income households most probably because of its low price. Most respondents preferred sweet potato due to its easy preparation.