Farm production diversity and commercialization on household dietary diversity in some selected areas in Bangladesh

Abstract

For better nutritional results, nutrition education is essential. To the best of our knowledge, hardly any research has examined the effects of nutrition education, diverse farm production, and commercialization on household, women's, and children's diets. This study examines the impact of commercialization, agricultural diversification, and nutrition education on household dietary diversity in Bangladesh. We also examine the effects of specific agricultural techniques, crop and livestock variety, and animal diversity on nutritional diversity. Data were obtained from 300 randomly selected families in a district. For model estimation, negative binomial regression was utilized. The mean household dietary diversity (HDD) is 7.59. Among food groups, 99% of participants intake cereals, more than half of the participants intake meat and egg and less than half of the participants intake fish. 49.3% of participants had adequate dietary diversity and 50.7% of participants had inadequate dietary diversity. HDD was significantly associated with household size, farm production, market participation, and rearing of domestic animals. The HDD score increases with increased household size. As farm production increases the odds of HDD score increases by 1.35 units. The HDD score was higher for market participation individuals. For the people who reared domestic animals, the HDD was 0.16 times lower than those who do not rear. The improvement of dietary diversification at the household level can be achieved through nutrition education and improved market access. The findings highlight the need of enhancing market access, crop-livestock integration, small livestock, legumes, vegetables, and fruits for enhanced nutrition.