Food Affordability
Definition:
Monthly food costs for a reference family of four in British Columbia. This indicator helps to assess the affordability of a healthy diet. It provides food cost data across BC based on the National Nutritious Food Basket.
Measurement & Limitations:
In BC, data is collected every two years, during the last week of May and the first week of June, by the five regional health authorities. Health Canada’s NNFB tool is used to collect the cost and the same tool is used each year to facilitate comparison. From 2009-2013, data was collected and analyzed at the regional health authority (RHA) level and food costs from approximately 130 randomly selected, full-service grocery stores were used to determine the average cost of the 67 food items. Since 2015, data collection and analysis includes all 16 health service delivery areas (HSDA) to address the RHAs’ request for more local-level data. In 2017, BCCDC randomly selected a sample of 254 full-service grocery stores stratified by the HSDAs of the RHAs. BCCDC received complete data for 245 stores, which was used to determine the average cost of the NNFB. The surveillance team at BCCDC analyzed the data submitted by the regional health authorities using algorithms and information developed by Health Canada on the NNFB. The average cost in each food category was weighted by purchase popularity and the amount of food that each person needs, adjusted by sex and age. Then the total cost was adjusted based on the size of family, using the household size adjustment factor, to account for the economies or diseconomies of scale.
There are two main sampling limitations: data collection was a one-time snapshot event that may not necessarily reflect the average annual cost estimate and the exclusion of non-full-service grocery stores may influence the estimated costs and may not reflect the cost in remote areas where there are a limited number of full-service grocery stores.
Other limitations include:
- Not everyone shops at full-services stores.
- Rural and remote areas have limited number of full-services stores.
- Transportation costs are not considered for rural and remote communities who may have to travel long distances to access a full-service grocery store.
- The NNFB costing tool is from 2008 and some of the items and/or sizes may no longer represent the current marketplace.
- The Health Canada costing analysis tool is also from 2008 (with revisions in 2009) and may no longer reflect variables such as item popularity.
- When applied to sub-provincial levels, demographic and geographic differences between RHAs/ HSDAs may not be fully captured by the current Health Canada NNFB costing analysis tool. These differences include but are not limited to: Age and sex distribution, ethnicity/culture, average family composition, rural/remoteness vs. urbanity, seasonality of food items, and seasonality of sales promotion. Inflation rate is not considered when comparing prices over time. While a random sample of stores is used, the inclusion of high-end “health food” grocery stores may disproportionately influence the total cost. Food costing data collection is completed by health authority’s Registered Dietitians and volunteers whose skills, knowledge of items and precision may vary causing some variation in the data collected.
Source:
BC Centre for Disease Control – Food Insecurity
Resources:
Food Affordability in the Sustainable Development Goals
Click on the SDG to reveal more information
2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
It is time to rethink how we grow, share and consume our food.
If done right, agriculture, forestry and fisheries can provide nutritious food for all and generate decent incomes, while supporting people-centred rural development and protecting the environment.
Right now, our soils, freshwater, oceans, forests and biodiversity are being rapidly degraded. Climate change is putting even more pressure on the resources we depend on, increasing risks associated with disasters such as droughts and floods. Many rural women and men can no longer make ends meet on their land, forcing them to migrate to cities in search of opportunities.
A profound change of the global food and agriculture system is needed if we are to nourish today’s 815 million hungry and the additional 2 billion people expected by 2050.
The food and agriculture sector offers key solutions for development, and is central for hunger and poverty eradication.