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M4. Household Food Acquisition

Purpose

The purpose of this module is to determine how households in the community acquire key food items- which are home-produced, which are collected or gathered, which are purchased, and from what sources. Additionally, the module will help to identify who in the household obtains the various foods on the list. There is also data collection on the cost of purchased items and the time of year that each food item is available in the area.

How to Get Information on Food Acquisition

This module is in the form of structured questions. As food acquisition is typically a daily activity, respondents should feel at ease answering the questions. You may find that the sources of food vary according to the time of year. If so, record the different sources, together with information on pertinent seasonal variations

The household member responsible for food acquisition may vary, or more than one family member may obtain the same item. If this is the case, record all individuals who acquire the food item most frequently.

FORM 6.2 Summary of Responses to Each Concept/Attribute (M3)

FORM 6.3 Summary of Responses (M3)

In some parts of the world it is not acceptable, or it is unusual, for married women to visit the market. In many cases, the woman of the household generally sends a younger woman or a young girl to make food purchases. Despite the fact she does not physically go to make the purchase, since she is the decision-maker and is highly aware of the local food prices, she should still be recorded as the person who obtains the food.

For purchased foods, be sure to determine the quantity of food to which the price corresponds. For example, if you are questioning the respondent about the cost of liver, ask how large a piece and/or how many small pieces he or she is referring to. Once you have determined a standard quantity by which a particular food item is sold, encourage respondents to refer to the same quantity when responding to your inquiries. For example, people may generally purchase tomatoes three at a time. Staple foods, such as rice or maize, may be measured according to the size of the bag (for example one kg) in which the food is purchased.

Before carrying out this module you need to establish a list of key locations or places where people in the area acquire food. This information will be gathered primarily from key-informants, but you may find that the team has identified other locations where people acquire food items through participant observation and exposure to the community. While the module is being carried out you can also attempt to identify other ways in which items on the key food list are obtained. For example, during the mango season children may pick mangoes directly from the tree. Therefore, it will be necessary to inquire whether the respondent is aware of other means by which members of her household obtain the items on the key food list.

If you find after carrying out the module with several respondents that the information gathered becomes repetitive, you should consider conducting this module with a group of respondents. If this is the case be sure to get a representative sample that includes respondents from the various neighborhoods in the study.

Expect to carry out this module in thirty minutes with one respondent.

Administering the Task

i. Before carrying out the module, be sure to fill in the list of twenty-five to thirty food items on the left hand column of Form 7.1. Also include the season during which the interview is being conducted. If a photocopy machine is available, you will want to fill out the form and make photocopies before beginning.
ii. Begin with the list of twenty-five to thirty key foods. Tell the respondent that you are interested in learning about how food of this household is obtained. Start the module by reviewing the various ways that food is acquired in the area. Go through the places where food acquisition takes place in the community and discuss in general the different foods that are obtained in these locations. It is also important that you ask whether there are other ways that food is acquired, such as gathering of wild food or picking of fruit from trees.
iii. Explain to the respondent that you are going to ask a series of questions about each of the food items you have just been discussing in previous interviews. Since you are trying to get short answers, you can record the responses directly on Form 7.1.
iv. Start with the staple foods which are often eaten daily and therefore must be obtained on a regular basis.

You may begin by saying, "As you know, I am interested in learning about where you obtain food eaten in the village. From my discussions with people in the community, I understand that there are several places where food can be acquired."

Read the list of places that you have established.

You may continue, "Let's begin with rice. Where does your family get rice?"

FORM 7.1 Food Acquisition Form for Individuals (M4)

Once you have received the initial response, probe for other possible answers.

You may continue, "You said that you purchase rice at the local store. Are there any other places where you might get rice?"

v. Record the answer(s) by making a slash mark in the appropriate box on Form 7.1.
vi. Continue by asking, "Who in your household obtains the rice?"

After you receive the answer, ask "Is there anyone else who may obtain the rice?" vii. Record the member(s) who obtain the food item in the appropriate box.

viii. Now ask, "I am interested in learning about the price of rice. Could you tell me how much you pay for rice?"

It the respondent is reluctant to answer, encourage her/him by using a concrete example.

You could say, "Did you buy rice yesterday or the day before yesterday?" If so, "How much did you pay for the rice?"

ix. Once you have the price, determine the amount of food purchased. The respondent may give the actual weight, the size of the container that the item was placed in, or the number of pieces or items that was purchased with this amount of money. As mentioned previously, once you have identified a standard portion in which the food is sold, encourage respondents to give the price for that portion.
x. Include the season that corresponds with the in formation being collected. For example, if the food item is mango and mangoes are only avail able March through duly, March-July should be recorded in the box.
xi. Record the answers in the appropriate boxes on Form 7.1.

Keep in mind that your questioning will vary depending on whether or not the food is purchased. If a food is purchased or collected by more than one family member, be sure to include that information on Form 7.1 and 7.3.

Procedures For Analyzing The Data

i. Begin with the question regarding the place where food is acquired.
ii. Based on the responses on Form 7.1, list the important sites where food is acquired in the boxes on Form 7.2.
iii. For each food item, tabulate the totals corresponding to the site where the food was obtained. Place the totals in the appropriate box on Form 7.2. Once you have recorded all of the responses, calculate the totals in the final row at the bottom of the table.
iv. Similarly, tabulate the frequencies for each person who acquires the food items, the price and the quantity on Form 7.3. If you find that there is a wide range of food prices and food quantities, it may be necessary for you to design an additional Form (7.3A) to facilitate the standardization of food item prices per corresponding amount. You will want to develop a table that will graphically display the amount of each food item with a corresponding average and range of prices.
v. Finally, on Form 7.4 tabulate the months of the year that each food item is available, going through the foods item by item and placing an X in the appropriate box. This information should also be recorded for each food item in the Community Food System Data Tables.

M5. 24-Hour Recalls and Food Frequency

Purpose

The purpose of this module is to understand the consumption of the selected key foods by special members of the household: children ages six months to six years and women of reproductive age. This information will help determine vitamin A intake by individuals at high risk.

The reason that two exercises are conducted is to ensure that the information you are collecting is accurate and consistent. While respondents often overestimate food consumption when responding to food frequencies, 24-hour recalls present a means to understand actual intake in a one-day period. Furthermore, 24-hour intakes are a good introduction to food frequencies, allowing respondents to begin thinking about the consumption of particular food items by individual household members.

When conducting both modules it is important that the interviewer remain nonjudgmental. A non threatening approach with the respondents will encourage an open and honest report of what was eaten at the household level.

FORM 7.2 Summary of Food Acquisition: Source (M4)

FORM 7.3 Summary of Food Acquisition: Person, Price (M4)

FORM 7.4 Summary of Food Acquisition: Seasonality (M4)

Continued

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