~ 105 ~ The Pharma Innovation Journal 2023; 12(1): 105-109 ISSN (E): 2277-7695 ISSN (P): 2349-8242 NAAS Rating: 5.23 TPI 2023; 12(1): 105-109 © 2023 TPI www.thepharmajournal.com Received: 05-10-2022 Accepted: 11-11-2022 Devadarshini C Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Community Science, OUAT, Odisha, India Chhotaray S Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Community Science, OUAT, Odisha, India Corresponding Author: Devadarshini C Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Community Science, OUAT, Odisha, India Food security among farming households: A study in coastal Odisha Devadarshini C and Chhotaray S DOI: https://doi.org/10.22271/tpi.2023.v12.i1b.18114 Abstract A total of 350 households were selected for the study from the five coastal districts which had similar agro-climatic zone namely Puri, Khurdha, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada and Nayagarh in 2016 to assess the food security status among farming households. Based on land holding size households were categorized as semi-medium farmers (n=82) small farmers (n=87), marginal farmers (n=94) and landless labourers (n=87). Information on the socio-economic status, and food security of the respondents from each category was collected by a structured and pre-tested questionnaire. The mean land holding size of the marginal farmers was 0.34ha. The small farmers and the semi-medium farmers were having mean land of 1.40ha and 3.90 ha respectively. The mean age of the male farmers was 45.94 years and for the female farmers it was 38.58 years. The mean expenditure (Rs. 3219.77±182.00) was very close to the average monthly income (Rs. 3459.74±274.00) of the households. The majority of the households were found to be food insecure in terms of quantitative availability of foods (59.43%), food preference (60.00%), diversification of foods (60.57%), reduction in the frequency of meal consumed (64.85%), choice of foods (65.71%) and reduced quantity of food consumed (68.58%). The mean score for quantitative availability of food (2.68±0.46), food preference (2.44±0.63), diversification of foods (2.38±0.08), reduction in frequency of meal consumed (2.00±0.10), choice of foods (2.33±0.09) and reduced quantity of food consumed (2.12±0.09) was found to be significant higher among the landless labourers compared to other categories of farmers. The majority of the respondents were food insecure both in terms of quality and quantity. It was more prevalent among the landless labourers followed by marginal farmers. Keywords: Food security, nutrition security, body mass index, nutritional status Introduction For every individual in our country food security is important. Improving food security ought to be an issue of great importance for a country like India where one-third of the population is estimated to be absolutely poor and one-half of children malnourished in one way or another (Bhatt 2011). Food security is a complex sustainable development issue, linked to health through malnutrition. The World Food Summit in 1996 defined food security as “when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life” (FAO 1996) [4] . This definition has been identified with the four dimensions of food security: availability, access, stability and utilization. Nutrition security focuses on food consumption by the household or the individual and on how that food is utilized by the body. There is an integral linkage between food security and nutrition security. Food and nutrition security can be achieved when all people at all times have physical, social and economic access to food of sufficient quantity and quality in terms of variety, diversity, nutrient content and safety to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life, coupled with a sanitary environment, adequate health, education and care.” (FAO 2011) [5, 11] . Thus, food and non-food factors that is, drinking water, environmental hygiene and primary health care are involved in food security. Farming households are the most affected in terms of food insecurity and poverty. According to (Cruz 2010; Valdés et al. 2010) [2, 10] majority (more than 80 per cent) of the smallholder farmers in the world are food insecure and depend on land as their primary source of livelihood. The coastal part of the state is vulnerable to periodic recurrence of natural calamities giving rise to a situation of chronic food insecurity particularly among the marginal farmers, and landless labourers (Envis Newsletter 2011) [3] . Several studies have evolved the food security status of agricultural workers to be unsatisfactory.