How important is improving food availability for reducing child malnutrition in developing countries?

Do increases in the food supply per person in a country, i.e., national foo d availability, contribute substantially to reductions in malnutrition amon g its children? This paper sets out to answer this controversial question u sing panel data from 63 developing countries over 1970-1996. This paper giv es evidence in support of a statistically significant and strong positive i mpact of national food availability on child nutrition, finding that increa sed food supplies have resulted in significant reductions in malnutrition s ince the 1970s despite population increases over the period. However, per-c apita food supplies have a declining marginal impact: their effect is quite strong for countries with very low food availability (e.g., most countries in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia), but weak or non-existent for those with high levels (e.g., most countries in the Near East and North Africa). Further, non-food factors, such as women's education and status and the qua lity of health environments, are also important determinants of children's nutritional status. Depending on the state of food availability in any part icular geographic area and relative costs, these factors may merit greater priority in policies to reduce malnutrition. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.