Analysis of Food Production and Consumption Based on the Emergy Method in Kazakhstan

• Published in: Foods 2021-07, Vol.10 (7), p.1520
• Main Authors: Jia, Mengmeng, Zhen, Lin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agriculture; Animal-based foods; Consumption; Consumption patterns; COVID-19; Decision making; Ecological effects; Economic conditions; Emergy; emergy analysis; Food; Food analysis; Food consumption; Food plants; Food production; food production and consumption; Food science; Food security; GDP; Grasslands; Gross Domestic Product; Imports; influencing factors; Kazakhstan; Land use; Meat; Natural resources; Plant-based foods; Population; Precipitation; Principal components analysis; Research methodology; Rural areas; Rural populations; Solar energy; Standard of living; Statistical analysis; Supply & demand; Sustainable consumption; Sustainable development; Sustainable production
• ISSN: 2304-8158; 2304-8158
• DOI: 10.3390/foods10071520

The imbalance in the supply and demand for resources is a thorny issue that many countries have to face. Food is a basic resource throughout the world. Understanding the exact situation of food production and consumption is an important foundation for sustainable development. This paper aims to explore the quantity and pattern changes in food production and consumption in Kazakhstan. This can reflect the level of residents’ standard of living and the situation of natural resource use. This paper focuses on the quantitative relationship between animal-based food and plant-based food and the tendency towards changes in urban and rural residents’ food production and consumption in Kazakhstan based on the emergy analysis method. The data of food production and consumption were mainly obtained from the official statistics of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Bank, Statistical Commission of the Ministry of National Economy of Kazakhstan, and literature. The research results showed that, over time, Kazakhstan residents’ food consumption patterns have become more varied, and the proportion of meat consumption to total food consumption has increased. Although the rural per capita food consumption is significantly different from that of urban residents, this gap decreased in 2019. In Kazakhstan, the consumption of several types of food still relies on imports. Food production and consumption are affected by economic, social, and ecological factors. The results of this research can provide scientific support for reasonable and sustainable production and consumption strategies in Kazakhstan.