Food-related energy consumption can help reveal poverty in rural Chinese households

Energy consumption for cooking is important for satisfying basic needs, complementing traditional poverty measurements. Here, we propose an energy consumption-based indicator (Energy Engel Coefficient) that measures the proportion of household energy dedicated to food preparation activities relative to the total. Using a nation-wide household survey in China, we find that this indicator exhibits consistent patterns with regional and household characteristics. In addition, it more accurately reflects Engel's Law than traditional Engel Coefficient, which holds that households with lower incomes spend a larger proportion of their income on basic needs. Our proposed measure also shows stronger performance than traditional coefficient in comparing with non-monetary metrics like subjective experience and asset ownership. Our analysis reveals that the Energy Engel Coefficient identifies 13.9% of households experiencing poverty, with 85.8% of these households not identified by the traditional coefficient. These households are predominantly low-income, small-sized rural ones. Therefore, this indicator complements poverty identification and contributes to improving the distribution of welfare.