Household consumption of complementary infants foods in Malawi: the case of Zomba and Chiradzulu Districts

This study models household consumption of complementary infant foods using a multi-stage budgeting
framework and derives estimates based on a sample of 160 households from Zomba and Chiradzulu districts in Malawi.  A system of demand equations for different complementary foods is estimated using the Almost Ideal Demand System (AIDS) model.

Consumption patterns of complementary foods are found to be significantly affected by the expenditure levels at the different stages of the household budgeting process and prices of the commodities. Other factors that directly affect the consumption patterns include the age of the child and the size of the household. Compared to their urban counterparts, rural households are found to be less responsive to the prices. Analyses of own and cross-price elasticities imply complement-type (same direction) price responses among different complementary foods but substitution effects between complementary foods and non-infant foods. The important child-welfare policy implications of these results involve safety-nets design. The urban and rural poor could be targeted through information and subsidised complementary foods made available at self-selecting public under-five clinics.

The results of this study demonstrates that the households in the sample distinguish between clearly inferior infant complementary foods and more suitable foods which they treat as complementary. The authors conclude that the main challenge for infant micronutrient policy interventions is to make sure that the complements meet a threshold minimum micronutrient content in terms of vitamin A rich foods, which are inexpensive and readily available.