The progress towards achieving household nutritional food-security in
Bangladesh has remained slow. So far the food security is cereal-based
(mainly rice) and food basket has not yet diversified towards high nutritive/
quality food. This article has examined the expenditure inequalities in the
dietary pattern and incidence of poverty in Bangladesh by using household
income, expenditure and food consumption survey data. Results have
shown wide-spread inequalities in income and expenditure distribution.
Among food items, the inequalities have been found very low for cereals
and high for livestock and horticulture commodities and various types of
fish species in both rural and urban areas. The analysis of food poverty,
its depth and severity has revealed a typical hidden poverty that could
not be brought up by analyzing economic poverty. The food poverty has
been found high for pulses, horticulture and livestock commodities among
both economically rich and poor households. Fish, livestock, horticulture
and pulses sectors should be accorded high priority to diversify the dietary
pattern towards high quality food and improve the nutritional food-security
of households in Bangladesh.