SOUTHERN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS DECEMBER, 1983 DETERMINANTS OF HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURE ON FRESH VEGETABLES

Current concern about the health effects of Ameri- Given that fresh vegetables constitute approximately can dietary habits has led to recommendations by gov- 70 percent of per capita vegetable consumption in the ernment officials and nutrition experts that consumers United States (USDA), consideration is given to this increase their consumption of vegetables (U.S. Con- product form in this paper. The source of data for this gress, Council for Agricultural Science and Technol- research is the 1972-74 Bureau of Labor Statistics ogy). From a nutritional viewpoint, vegetables Consumer Expenditure Diary Survey. contribute substantially to meeting the requirements for a balanced diet because they are rich sources of fiber, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins. From an eco- MODEL DEVELOPMENT nomic viewpoint, while occupying on the average only 5 to 6 percent of the household food budget, vegeta- Empirical investigations of household expenditure bles comprise approximately 20 percent of the per cap- behavior, such as those by Prais and Houthakker, ita consumption (dry weight) of food in the United Brown and Deaton, and Ferber have dealt with nu-States (USDA). merous determinants of food consumption. This study The extant literature on household expenditure pat- hypothesizes that the following socioeconomic char