Changes in the geography of Brazilian diet diversity

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the evolution of Brazilian food patterns, based on the 2002-2003 and 2008-2009 Brazilian Household Budget Surveys (POFs), and to evaluate similarities in food acquisition among the Brazilian states, in search for the main drivers of the changes.

Design/methodology/approach

Using the data gathered from the 17 food groups within the POFs and multidimensional scaling, the Brazilian states were divided into groups and analysed according to their similarities in terms of annual per capita household food acquisition.

Findings

The study’s results point to five groups with similarities in terms of food acquisition among the Brazilian states. Additionally, the issues that reflect Brazil’s diversity were discussed, highlighting possible factors that caused the movement of some states between groups during the analysis period. The heterogeneity observed in food acquisition in Brazil emphasises Brazilian agribusiness development and underscores the influence of the food supply chains on the regional food patterns.

Originality/value

This research presents the geographic changes in the Brazilian agribusiness, and how these changes are reflected in the population food patterns and in the heterogeneity in food acquisition among the Brazilian states. Concerning this work, supply chains of agri-industrial products focussed on the domestic market can be analysed in depth, offering guidelines for future research in logistics and agri-industrial economy.

Citation

Mores, G.d.V., Talamini, E. and Dewes, H. (2017), "Changes in the geography of Brazilian diet diversity", British Food Journal, Vol. 119 No. 6, pp. 1162-1175. https://doi.org/10.1108/BFJ-05-2016-0208