Testing the Various Pathways Linking Forest Cover to Dietary Diversity in Tropical Landscapes

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cg.contributor.affiliationVictoria University of Wellingtonen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationPennsylvania State Universityen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationWageningen University & Researchen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationUniversity of British Columbiaen_US
cg.contributor.crpForests, Trees and Agroforestryen_US
cg.contributor.crpWheaten_US
cg.contributor.crpMaizeen_US
cg.coverage.countryBangladeshen_US
cg.coverage.countryBurkina Fasoen_US
cg.coverage.countryCameroonen_US
cg.coverage.countryEthiopiaen_US
cg.coverage.countryIndonesiaen_US
cg.coverage.countryNicaraguaen_US
cg.coverage.countryZambiaen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2BDen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2BFen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2CMen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2ETen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2IDen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2NIen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2ZMen_US
cg.coverage.regionSouthern Asiaen_US
cg.coverage.regionSouth-eastern Asiaen_US
cg.coverage.regionWestern Africaen_US
cg.coverage.regionMiddle Africaen_US
cg.coverage.regionEastern Africaen_US
cg.coverage.regionCentral Americaen_US
cg.creator.identifierGroot, J.C.J.: 0000-0001-6516-5170en_US
cg.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2019.00097en_US
cg.issn2571-581Xen_US
cg.journalFrontiers in Sustainable Food Systemsen_US
cg.subject.ciforFOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITIONen_US
cg.volume3en_US
dc.contributor.authorBaudron, Frédéricen_US
dc.contributor.authorTomscha, S.A.en_US
dc.contributor.authorPowell, B.en_US
dc.contributor.authorGroot, Jeroen C.J.en_US
dc.contributor.authorGergel, Sarah E.en_US
dc.contributor.authorSunderland, T.C.H.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2021-03-08T08:40:44Zen_US
dc.date.available2021-03-08T08:40:44Zen_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/112590en_US
dc.titleTesting the Various Pathways Linking Forest Cover to Dietary Diversity in Tropical Landscapesen_US
dcterms.abstractA diverse diet is important to address micronutrient deficiencies and other forms of malnutrition, one of the greatest challenges of today’s food systems. In tropical countries, several studies have found a positive association between forest cover and dietary diversity, although the actual mechanisms of this has yet to be identified and quantified. Three complementary pathways may link forests to diets: a direct pathway (e.g., consumption of forest food), an income pathway (income from forest products used to purchase food from markets), and an agroecological pathway (forests and trees sustaining farm production). We used piece-wise structural equation modelling to test and quantify the relative contribution of these three pathways for households in seven tropical landscapes in Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Nicaragua and Zambia. We used survey data from 1,783 households and determined forest cover within a 2 km radius of each household. The quality of household diets was assessed through four indicators: household dietary diversity and consumption of fruits, vegetables and meat, based on a 24-hour recall. We found evidence of a direct pathway in four landscapes (Bangladesh, Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Zambia), an income pathway in none of the landscapes considered, and an agroecological pathway in three landscapes (Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and Indonesia). We also found evidence of improved crop and livestock production with greater forest cover in five landscapes (Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Indonesia). Conversely, we found negative associations between forest cover and crop and livestock production in three landscapes (Cameroon, Indonesia, and Zambia). In addition, we found evidence of forest cover being negatively related to at least one indicator of diet quality in three landscapes (Indonesia, Nicaragua and Zambia), and to integration to the cash economy in three landscapes (Cameroon, Ethiopia, Nicaragua). This is one of the first studies to quantify the different mechanisms linking forest cover and diet. Our work illuminates the fact that these mechanisms can vary significantly from one site to another, calling for site-specific interventions. Our results also suggest the positive contributions of forests to rural livelihoods cannot be generalized and should not be idealized.en_US
dcterms.accessRightsOpen Accessen_US
dcterms.available2019-11-08en_US
dcterms.bibliographicCitationBaudron, F., Tomscha, S.A., Powell, B., Groot, J.C.J., Gergel, S.E., Sunderland, T.C.H. 2019. Testing the Various Pathways Linking Forest Cover to Dietary Diversity in Tropical Landscapes. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 3 : 97. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2019.00097en_US
dcterms.issued2019-11-08en_US
dcterms.languageenen_US
dcterms.licenseCC-BY-4.0en_US
dcterms.publisherFrontiers Mediaen_US
dcterms.subjectdieten_US
dcterms.subjectnutritionen_US
dcterms.subjectfoodsen_US
dcterms.subjectlandscapeen_US
dcterms.subjectlivelihoodsen_US
dcterms.subjecthorticultureen_US
dcterms.subjectecologyen_US
dcterms.subjectfood scienceen_US
dcterms.typeJournal Articleen_US

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