The last time Jayanthi Raghuraman and her family from Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu consumed non-vegetarian food was a week before her husband lost his job amid the pandemic. The job loss during the lockdown hit them hard, and the poverty left them with no option but to cut on the meat consumption. The price of chicken that was usually sold for Rs 120 also increased during this period, making non-vegetarian food less inaccessible.
Jayanthi’s family consumed meat regularly, so, while it was difficult, the family had to cut down due to its unaffordability during the pandemic. And it’s not just her family who had to do this – this was a common trend observed in as many as 1,853 households located in eight districts of Tamil Nadu.
Boonbox, an exclusive rural assisted logistics platform, along with Economix Consulting Group (ECG) carried out a survey among women between age of 20 and 67 years across Ariyalur, Kanyakumari, Madurai, Pudukottai, Thanjavur, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar. The survey was conducted among women living in households with income ranging from less than Rs 1,000 to Rs 50,000 per month between April 1 and July 20. The study found out that the food consumption habits in families living across rural Tamil Nadu changed due to COVID-19.
Across the respondents, expenditure on food was observed as the single largest item of expenditure to be impacted (73%). 71% respondents have said they reduced their egg and meat consumption. The reduction across districts where households were Ariyalur (87%), Pudukottai (72%) and Madurai (70%), Kanyakumari (90%), Virudhunagar (88%) and Pudukottai (86%).
The CEO and founder of Boonbox Ramachandran Ramanathan said, “In the survey, respondents from 708 households told us that they reduced the expenditure on food and kitchen essentials. Around 411 residents told us that they reduced consumption of meat and eggs. The severe reduction in consumption of meat was recorded in Ariyalur, Pudukottai, and Madurai.”
During the course of the survey, residents of Ariyalur, Pudukkottai and Madurai revealed that they cut down their consumption on non-vegetarian food due to the increasing price of meat and loss of income. Around 89% of respondents in Thanjavur and women of Ariyalur, Pudukkottai and Madurai said that increased meat and egg prices led them to decrease the consumption of these items.
Some families even reported relying completely on ration given by the government through the public distribution system during the survey period. One of the women surveyed, Selvi Kumar from Jeyamkondan, said, “At the moment, we cannot afford to spend anything. We are restricting our food intake and are managing the day to day life with free ration and some financial aid given by the government.”
In another cases, a 29-year-old woman from Ariyalur stopped consuming meat during her pregnancy due to its unaffordability. She said, “I am pregnant and I cannot afford to spend much on food items since I have to save up for my delivery expenses.”
People of Kanyakumari, Virudhunagar and Pudukottai also reported cutting down on overall consumption of grains, flour, pulses, spices and condiments, cooking masalas, cooking oil, sugar, salt, milk, coffee, tea and vegetables. The survey points out that this was a worrisome trend because people had to cut down their protein intake amid the pandemic as their spending capacity went down and as did affordability of these items, along with rumours that meat could contain the novel coronavirus.
The survey also found that there is an immediate need for creating alternate livelihood options for the rural population. The survey findings revealed, “Overall, 73% of our respondents from three districts – Pudukottai, Thanjavur and Ariyalur – reported an impact on employment owing to COVID-19. This situation has been further compounded with the migrant workers returning home.”