Assessing the Effect of Income Levels on Food Security of Households in Tehran Province

According to reports from the Iranian Ministry of Health, the food insecurity situation in Tehran province is serious and a significant part of the province's population is facing a lack of nutrients in the food basket; this has led to an increase in the incidence of various diseases among Tehranian households. In this regard, although with the decision of the Working Group on Health and Food Security and the participation of various executive bodies, especially during 2000s and 2010s, various programs have been carried out to improve food security in Tehran province, but the spread of various deficiencies and diseases in the province is likely to be as a result of an unfavorable pattern and food insecurity. Since ensuring health and food security is one of the strategic goals of the 20-year Iran Development Perspective Document, in this study, based on the classification of the commodity groups of the Statistical Center of Iran (SCI) and using the nutritional performance matrix, the food consumption patterns were initially identified in different income deciles of Tehran province; then, following the calculation of food security index for these deciles, the effect of income levels on food security of the households was investigated using the logit model. The results showed that the middle and upper income deciles had more valuable and diverse food baskets than the lower deciles of the society and the consumption of grains and fats among them was lower and in return, they had a higher consumption of legumes, sugar and sweets, meat, fresh fruits, milk, dairy and eggs, nuts, beverages and ready food. Based on the study findings, the variables of membership in the top three income deciles, age of household head, place of residence, size of home, employment of  household head, household income and food diversity had a significantly positive effect on the household food security and the variables of membership in the bottom three income deciles,  gender of household head, place of residence, household size and working hours of the household head had a significantly negative effect on the food security of households.