60 to 95% of household consumption of nutrient-dense foods (NDFs – fruits and vegetables; milk, meat, fish and eggs) in Bihar is purchased from the market. This makes it clear that any major boost to NDF access must run through markets. Production oriented (e.g. home gardens) and individual food value chain interventions will only get us so far. Improving diets in a broad-based way demands focus on market improvements that cut across NDFs, improve availability and lower prices. This recognition is at the heart of INFUSION.
A key node in the local food market system in Bihar is the rural haat – local retail markets that are a major direct source of NDF purchase by households. There are tens of thousands of such haats across Bihar, but we know next to nothing about these critical nodes of nutritious food. Public data collection only extends to wholesale (APMC) markets.
Hence the INFUSION project has a workstream dedicated to improving knowledge about haats and other food markets in our study areas. In a sample of about 300 haats (and larger subregional ‘block’ markets) spread across Samastipur and Bhojpur districts, we are launching a high-frequency data collection effort. First, we will collect one-off information on the characteristics of these food markets – size, vendor and food characteristics, facilities and infrastructure, road and mobile connectivity, governance, etc. Then for a period of one year we will collect twice-weekly data on prices of a set of key NDFs (we will also collect detailed seasonal data on a sub-sample of these markets on aspects such as food loss, food safety and gender-sensitivity in a separate exercise).
The high-frequency data will enable us to shed light on a number of important, policy-relevant questions. For example, how do the availability and prices of different kinds of NDFs evolve through the seasons? Do prices equalize across markets efficiently, or are there hotspots and islands of high prices? If some markets have consistently higher prices than others, do specific characteristics of those markets (e.g. their size, infrastructure or governance) or connectivity between them (e.g. road access) play a role in driving price differentials?
INFUSION’s objective for this workstream is to not only to promote uptake of such evidence by policymakers, but also to demonstrate the value of such data and work towards mainstreaming continued data collection into the future.
Bhavani Shankar, 19th July 2024
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