Impact Of Agricultural Market Reforms On Smallholder Farmers In ...

a significant number of household (about 30 percent) supplement their own production with maize
purchases. Few households purchase sorghum/millet (9 percent) or yams (34 percent). On the
other hand, a large number of commodities are purchased by a majority of farm households: rice,
beans/cowpeas, cassava flour, meat, fish, onions, and tomatoes. With the exception of some staple
foods (maize, sorghum/millet, cassava, and yams), the proportion buying each food is generally
greater than the proportion producing it for their own consumption (see Table 4.1.142).
The survey indicates that, of the 21 food items listed, farm households in Bénin produce an average
of 6 of them for own consumption and buy an average of 12 of them. This suggests that the image
of the semi-subsistence farmer who produces food for his family and sells some of the harvest to
cover school fees and other non-food necessities is not accurate in the case of Bénin. The farm
household economy is more complex, with the production of a relatively small number of food
items for own use and reliance on the market for a large number of other foods (see Table 4.1.142).
Food expenditure by department The composition of food expenditure varies across
departments, reflecting differences in income and agro-climatic zone. In Atacora and Borgou,
sorghum/millet, yams, and maize are the most important food items in the budget. These three
commodities alone account for 42 percent of the food budget in Atacora and 50 percent in Borgou.
Although maize is important in the diets in every department, sorghum/millet and yams are specific
to the north where they are produced. For example, sorghum/millet represents 15-18 percent of the
food budget in the two northern departments but less than 3 percent elsewhere. Yams follow a
similar pattern. Compared to the center and south, the share of the northern food budget allocated
to staples (including grains, legumes, and root crops) is high: 55 percent in Atacora and 58 percent
in Borgou. These departments also devote a larger share of the budget to meals outside the home,
probably due to the market for agricultural labor generated by cotton production. At the same time,
they allocate a smaller share of their food budget to beans/cowpeas, cassava, and fish than do
households in other departments, reflecting production patterns. Food consumption patterns in
Borgou are also notable for the small expenditures on alcoholic beverages (see Table 4.1.143).
In Atlantique, the most important elements in the food budget are meat, condiments, and maize.
The diet is relatively diversified, with the top three food items representing just 30 percent of the
total. Furthermore, just 34 percent of the food budget allocated to staples, less than in the other
departments. Households in Atlantique allocate a larger share of their food budget to
beans/cowpeas and to alcoholic beverages than elsewhere. The diversification, the importance of
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