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Journal of Integrative Agriculture  2026, Vol. 25 Issue (1): 377-389    DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2025.11.019
Agricultural Economics and Management Advanced Online Publication | Current Issue | Archive | Adv Search |
Pathways to improved food and nutrition security: The role of farm production diversity in household dietary outcomes in rural area of Pakistan

Muhammad Waseem1, Erbao Cao1#, Ihsan Jamil2, Bushra Mughal3, Mi Yu4

1 School of Economics and Trade, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China

2 School of Economics and Finance, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China

3 IPLUSO - Instituto Politécnico da Lusofonia, Lisbon 1950396, Portugal

4 College of Finance and Statistics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China

 Highlights 
Farm production diversity significantly enhances household dietary diversity in rural Pakistan, primarily through the own-farm consumption pathway.
Each additional crop or livestock species cultivated increases household dietary diversity, with own-farm production demonstrating stronger effects than market purchases.
Gender, education, and access to mobile phones influence dietary outcomes, underscoring the importance of social and technological factors alongside agricultural diversity.
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Abstract  

Malnutrition remains a significant global challenge, particularly in developing countries.  Policymakers have increasingly focused on improving household food security and nutrition through farm production diversity (FPD).  While research indicates that FPD correlates positively with reduced malnutrition, other studies emphasize the importance of market access for improved nutritional outcomes.  However, this evidence varies by region and remains inconsistent.  To address this knowledge gap, this study analyzed survey data from 450 smallholder farmers in Punjab, Pakistan, using regression models to examine the relationship between FPD and dietary diversity, as well as the underlying impact pathways.  The findings demonstrate that FPD significantly correlates with increased household dietary diversity score (HDDS).  FPD influences dietary diversification through both own-farm production and market food consumption pathways, with the own-farm production pathway showing greater impact.  The increase in food expenditure through own-farm production yielded a marginal return of 8% in household dietary diversity compared to 5.3% through marketing.  Gender differences emerged as significant, with male-headed households showing relatively lower dietary diversity.  These findings have substantial implications for countries with smallholder farming systems, providing valuable insights for the formation of agricultural policies, resource optimization, and rural development initiatives.

Keywords:  food security       nutrition security       FPD       HHDS       smallholder farmers  
Received: 04 October 2024   Accepted: 03 April 2025 Online: 14 November 2025  
Fund: 

The authors express deep appreciation to the National Natural Science Foundation of China (72071074) and Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province, China (2025JJ30031) for their financial support. 

About author:  Muhammad Waseem, E-mail: wasim2817@gmail.com; #Correspondence Erbao Cao, E-mail: caoerbao@hnu.edu.cn

Cite this article: 

Muhammad Waseem, Erbao Cao, Ihsan Jamil, Bushra Mughal, Mi Yu. 2026. Pathways to improved food and nutrition security: The role of farm production diversity in household dietary outcomes in rural area of Pakistan. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 25(1): 377-389.

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