Nearly two billion people worldwide suffer from some form of undernutrition, sparking discussions among researchers and policymakers about how to improve diets and nutrition among vulnerable populations.

new He studies The publication in the journal Nature Food challenges the conventional wisdom that the production of crop diversity by farmers (food production diversity or FPD) is the primary path to addressing nutritional deficiencies.

So what is the relationship between dietary diversity and the nutrition of individuals and families? Will market access address undernutrition?

What does the new study say?

The study, conducted by the Center for Development Research (ZEF) at the University of Bonn in Germany – the first of its kind – collected data on nearly 90,000 families in Africa between 2008 and 2022 in Ethiopia, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda.

It recommends that building better roads that provide access to markets in local towns and cities can better address undernutrition.

“We have shown that regional production diversity is important and can replace individual agricultural production diversity in many situations,” Professor Matin Qaim of ZEF told Al Jazeera.

“This is good news because it is much easier to ensure that additional crop and livestock species are produced somewhere in the region (and then distributed across local markets) than to have each individual small farm produce more and more species,” he explained.

The researchers studied a variety of crops and animal species kept by farmers, as well as detailed data on the types of food consumed within each household. The study uses the Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) to measure the nutritional diversity of a household’s diet by counting distinct food groups consumed over an entire week’s period. This measure provides insight into the range and quality of foods that households receive, and provides a snapshot of their eating habits and nutritional status.

Many of the farmers included in the study were small farmers, known as smallholders or small-scale agricultural producers.

The main questions the researchers wanted to answer were whether producing a variety of crops and animal species among smallholders was the most effective way to address undernutrition, and whether families with access to these farms enjoyed a more balanced diet.

Unfortunately, the results are mixed, as shown in the research.

“Producing so many different things on each farm means that farmers will be pushed to the subsistence level and will not be able to benefit from any division of labour. But we also show that access to markets – for example, improving infrastructure – matters a lot.”

What are the limitations of ancient studies on dietary diversity?

The current body of research examining the relationship between food production diversity and dietary diversity suffers from several limitations.

As noted in the Nature Food study, a narrow focus on production diversity at the farm level or focusing on a single country ignores the potential impact of broader diversity on household dietary patterns across countries.

Addressing these shortcomings may help researchers better understand the complex interplay between agricultural production and nutritional outcomes. Although local agricultural diversification has led to a more balanced diet for some families, it has had little effect.

“Small-scale agricultural production in Africa tends to be highly diversified anyway. Ensuring good access to local and regional markets is more important than continuing to improve the diversity on each farm,” said Thanh Tung Nguyen, a researcher at ZEF, who conducted the study with Al-Qaim. separately”.

“These markets not only allow farmers to sell their surplus food, but also enable them to buy those foods they lack,” he said at a public seminar. statement.

Inadequate infrastructure remains a major obstacle, as poorly maintained roads can lead to long travel times, causing products to deteriorate or become damaged during transport.

Proximity to urban centres, which is a proxy for market access costs in rural Africa, had a negative effect in all six countries. According to the study, the average household is located about 31 kilometers (19 miles) from the next urban center.

How can we better solve the problem of food insecurity?

The research suggests that the ability of local farmers to produce the right crops and raise the right animals, known as FPD, is part of the problem. However, FPD is not the only challenge facing households’ diets as measured by the Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS).

“Atmospheric shocks—defined as the occurrence of drought, floods, hurricanes, or related extreme events over the past 12 months—are negatively associated with HDDS,” the study says.

“Many other socioeconomic characteristics are positively associated with HDDS. Production of non-food cash crops – such as cotton, coffee, tea or tobacco – on private farms appears to contribute to increased household dietary diversity through positive cash income effects.”

Researcher Qaim says: “The issues of food resilience to climate and other types of shocks, and the role of private production versus markets in this regard, are not yet sufficiently understood.”

The researchers said the seasonality of some fruits and vegetables deserves more attention. The study recommended that to maximize agricultural efficiency and economic potential, farmers should prioritize growing crops that thrive in their region and soil conditions, leading to improved productivity and profitability.

Nowadays, there are efforts to address the problem of access to food in infrastructure. In 2016, the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), dedicated to implementing humanitarian and development projects, began a $55 million (£44 million) feeder road project in South Sudan to improve trade and food security.

In November, the Nyamlil Bridge was handed over to Sudan along with 44 kilometers (27 miles) of feeder roads, including clean drinking water plants and sewerage systems in Northern and Western Bahr el Ghazal states. The construction of the bridge affected 1.2 million people in the region and was intended to help them.