Reshaping the Agrifood Sector for Healthier Diets

Reshaping theAgrifood Sector forHealthier DietsPublic Disclosure Authorized Exploring the Links between AgrifoodPublic Support and Diet Quality Knowledge Note © 2025 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank1818 H Street NW,Washington, DC 20433Telephone: 202-473-1000;Internet:www.worldbank.org Some rights reserved This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank with external contributions. The findings,interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect the views ofThe World Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or currency of the data includedin this work and does not assume responsibility for any errors, omissions, or discrepancies inthe information, or liability with respect to the use of or failure to use the information, methods,processes, or conclusions set forth. The boundaries, colors, denominations, links/footnotes, and otherinformation shown in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerningthe legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. The citationof works authored by others does not mean the World Bank endorses the views expressed by thoseauthors or the content of their works. Nothing herein shall constitute or be construed or considered to be a limitation upon or waiver of theprivileges and immunities of The World Bank, all of which are specifically reserved. Rights and Permissions This work is available under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo. Under the Creative Commons Attribution license, you arefree to copy, distribute, transmit, and adapt this work, including for commercial purposes, under thefollowing conditions: Attribution—Please cite the work as follows: World Bank. 2025.Reshaping the Agrifood Sector forHealthier Diets: Exploring the Links between Agrifood Public Support and Diet Quality.World Bank,Washington, DC. License: Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 3.0 IGO Translations—If you create a translation of this work, please add the following disclaimer alongwith the attribution:This translation was not created by The World Bank and should not be consideredan official World Bank translation. The World Bank shall not be liable for any content or error in thistranslation. Adaptations—If you create an adaptation of this work, please add the following disclaimer alongwith the attribution:This is an adaptation of an original work by The World Bank. Views and opinionsexpressed in the adaptation are the sole responsibility of the author or authors of the adaptation and arenot endorsed by The World Bank. Third-party content—The World Bank does not necessarily own each component of the contentcontained within the work. The World Bank therefore does not warrant that the use of any third-party-owned individual component or part contained in the work will not infringe on the rights ofthose third parties. The risk of claims resulting from such infringement rests solely with you. If youwish to re-use a component of the work, it is your responsibility to determine whether permission isneeded for that re-use and to obtain permission from the copyright owner. Examples of componentscan include, but are not limited to, tables, figures, or images. All queries on rights and licenses should be addressed to World Bank Publications, The World BankGroup, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; e-mail:pubrights@worldbank.org. Cover design:Veronica Gadea, GCS, World Bank Group;Template and accessibility:Will Kemp, GCS,World Bank Group Table of Contents Acknowledgmentsvii Abbreviations and Acronymsviii Executive Summary x 1Failing to Tackle Malnutrition1 1.1.The growing triple burden of malnutrition11.2.The high costs of malnutrition61.3.Poor diets are a crucial part of malnutrition9References17 2.1.The problem with current agrifood support272.2.An opportunity to repurpose agrifood support36Notes44References45 3Global-Level Analysis: Agrifood Support and FoodConsumption49 3.1.Existing research on agrifood support and food consumption493.2.Different types of agrifood public support523.3.Different types of food commodities553.4.Methodology: Cross-country estimations55 3.5.Results: Support to the agrifood sector563.6.Results: Support to specific agrifood commodities59Notes68References68 4Country-Level Cases: Comparing Different Interventions71 4.1.Input subsidies, roads, and cash transfers in Bangladesh714.2.Input subsidies, irrigation, and cash transfers in Malawi81Data and methods83Notes92References93 5Future Directions 99 Appendix B:Global Dietary Database on Food Consumption105 Appendix C:Cross-Country Regression Estimations107 Tables Table 3.1Top Producers and Consumers of Grains60Table 3.2Top Producers and Consumers of Meats63Table 3.3Top Producers and Consumers of