Understanding household and food system determinants of chicken and egg consumption in India

Poultry is one of the fastest-growing agricultural sectors in India and its demand is said to be rising. There is a perception that higher incomes, growing population, urbanisation, and increased productivity in the industry have influenced Indian poultry consumption. However, consumer surveys have shown that the average poultry consumption in India has remained low. With this in mind, the paper analysed household determinants of chicken and egg consumption within the Indian population, using two rounds of National Sample Survey data (1993-1994 and 2011-2012). By conducting a spatiotemporal analysis of household consumption and expenditure survey and by using truncated Double Hurdle and Unconditional Quantile regressions (UQR) models, this study explored socio-economic and food system determinants of chicken and egg consumption in India. Key results highlight that while consumption has increased marginally over twenty years, supply-side determinants, such as price and poultry production concentration, influenced heterogenous consumption patterns in India. We also find evidence that historically marginalised groups consumed more chicken and eggs in comparison to non-marginalised groups and preliminary evidence suggests how household gender dynamics influence different consumption patterns. Adequate consumption of poultry is important to improve nutrient-deficient diets of vulnerable groups in India. Our findings on demand side determinants of poultry products are crucial to support consumer tailored actions to improve nutritional outcomes along with the Indian poultry sector policy planning.