Why behavioral economics matters to global food policy

Why behavioral economics matters to global food policy. Just, D. R. & Gabrielyan, G. Global Food Security.

As developed countries have grappled with rising rates of obesity, policymakers’ efforts have been frustrated. Traditional approaches have treated food consumers as if they were making deliberate and calculated food decisions, leading to policies that provide more detailed health information, pricing incentives and direct prohibitions. The results have fallen far short of expectations, and have often generated significant backlash in the process. Alternative approaches recognizing the passive nature of food decisions has recently gained some traction. These approaches, based on behavioral economics, rely on subtle changes in the food choice environment. The hallmark of these “nudges” are relatively large impacts on choice within the altered environment, relatively low costs, and little in the way of consumer resistance. In this paper we review the relevant literature within the developed world, and document the systematic policy applications. One key theme has been the importance of such interventions in food environments affecting the poor and food insecure. This is the case for two distinct reasons: First, it is the food insecure that are at greatest risk for obesity; second, the food insecure are most likely to be susceptible to food choice nudges. For these reasons, nudges may be of import in developing country settings. As obesity is on the rise in many developing countries, lessons learned in developed countries may be directly applicable. Alternatively, similar principles may be of use in ensuring proper nutrition among the food insecure as a means to prevent malnutrition or other acute diet related diseases. We provide some discussion of what these applications may look like, as well as the research needed to make effective use of behavioral choice in this new frontier.

@article{just_why_????,
title = {Why behavioral economics matters to global food policy},
issn = {2211-9124},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211912415300183},
doi = {10.1016/j.gfs.2016.05.006},
abstract = {As developed countries have grappled with rising rates of obesity, policymakers’ efforts have been frustrated. Traditional approaches have treated food consumers as if they were making deliberate and calculated food decisions, leading to policies that provide more detailed health information, pricing incentives and direct prohibitions. The results have fallen far short of expectations, and have often generated significant backlash in the process. Alternative approaches recognizing the passive nature of food decisions has recently gained some traction. These approaches, based on behavioral economics, rely on subtle changes in the food choice environment. The hallmark of these “nudges” are relatively large impacts on choice within the altered environment, relatively low costs, and little in the way of consumer resistance. In this paper we review the relevant literature within the developed world, and document the systematic policy applications. One key theme has been the importance of such interventions in food environments affecting the poor and food insecure. This is the case for two distinct reasons: First, it is the food insecure that are at greatest risk for obesity; second, the food insecure are most likely to be susceptible to food choice nudges. For these reasons, nudges may be of import in developing country settings. As obesity is on the rise in many developing countries, lessons learned in developed countries may be directly applicable. Alternatively, similar principles may be of use in ensuring proper nutrition among the food insecure as a means to prevent malnutrition or other acute diet related diseases. We provide some discussion of what these applications may look like, as well as the research needed to make effective use of behavioral choice in this new frontier.},
urldate = {2016-06-06},
journal = {Global Food Security},
author = {Just, David R. and Gabrielyan, Gnel},
file = {ScienceDirect Full Text PDF:files/54840/Just and Gabrielyan - Why behavioral economics matters to global food po.pdf:application/pdf;ScienceDirect Snapshot:files/54841/S2211912415300183.html:text/html}
}

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