income and food consumption

Income and Food ConsumptionAuthor(s): W. C. HopperSource: The Canadian Journal of Economics and Political Science / Revue canadienned'Economique et de Science politique, Vol. 9, No. 4 (Nov., 1943), pp. 487-506Published by: Wiley on behalf of Canadian Economics AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/137436 .

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INCOME AND FOOD CONSUMPTION

T N recent years in many countries of the world a great deal of attention has been directed toward the need for more nutritious diets. The

term "protective" foods has become established in the literature on nutrition. While there may be some differences of opinion as to what constitutes protective foods, practically all the lists of such foods which have been prepared by nutritionists include milk, meat, eggs, cheese, and fruits and vegetables.

The first studies of consumption of agricultural products in Canada were made by the Economics Division of the Dominion Department of

Agriculture in 1930 when by the use of mail questionnaires a survey was made of the purchases of apples by consumers in Toronto and Montreal. A year later the first study of milk consumption in Canada was made

by the Economics Division in the Sydney-Glace Bay area of Nova Scotia and in 1935 a more comprehensive study of milk consumption was undertaken in a number of urban and rural areas. Since 1935 additional studies of consumption of foods of various kinds have been made by the Economics Division as well as by other agencies. Most of these studies have been in relation to protective foods which in the main are the more expensive kinds of foods. These studies have been largely confined to city people although information has been gathered on the use of certain commodities in rural Canadian homes.

Absence of knowledge of the nutritional value of foods is undoubtedly the reason why many low income households do not have diets which contain adequate amounts of essential food elements. Educating consumers as to the kinds and quantities of foods which will maintain the health of the family and how to purchase and cook these foods should result in a larger consumption of protective foods. The nationality of the household may also play a small part in determining the kind and amount of certain foods that are consumed. The most important factor determining the quantities of protective foods purchased and used is, however, the income of the household. A close relationship between the household income and the kinds and quantities of such foods purchased has been shown in many studies of food consumption which have been made in Canada and elsewhere.

This paper will be devoted to the presentation of results of studies which show the relationship between the income of the household and the quantities of milk, cream, cheese, eggs, meat, fish, and fresh fruits and vegetables purchased. The figures which will be presented are obtained from studies made by the Economics Division during the past six years and from a survey of wage-earner families by the Dominion

487



488 The Canadian Journal of Economics and Political Science

Bureau of Statistics in 1937-8. The results of the studies made by the Economics Division have in most cases been presented in various bulle- tins and the results of the study by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics are presented in a report entitled, Family Income and Expenditure in Canada, 1937-8 (Ottawa, 1940). In considering the data presented in this paper it should be recognized that practically all of the studies mentioned were made prior to the war and therefore refer to peace- time conditions.

Milk is the most nearly perfect of the many foods available to Canadian consumers. The total production of milk annually in Canada is about seventeen billion pounds. Of this total, sales of fluid milk amount to about three billion pounds.

Fluid Milk Consumption in Cities. According to statements made by 3,684 housewives representing high, medium, and low income families of all occupations and nationalities who were personally interviewed by representatives of the Economics Division in 1935-6, the average daily consumption of whole fluid milk per person, as determined by the

quantities of milk purchases in four cities of Canada, was seven-tenths of a pint (Table I). This figure does not include milk consumed in any

TABLE I

DAILY PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF FLUID MILK IN FOUR CANADIAN CITIES, 1935-6*

Per capita consumption per day

City Number of Number of reported by households persons housewives

(pints)

Oshawa.. ......... . 816 3,365 0.71

Quebec City (French and English) . 790 4,686 0.68

Calgary................. . 996 3,995 0.74 Vancouver .................... 1,082 4,250 0.65

Total or average.... .......... 3,684 16,296 0.70t

*From Publication 608, An Economic Study of the Consumption of Milk and Cream in Certain Urban and Rural Districts of Canada by W. C. HOPPER and G. P. BOUCHER, and Publication 678, An Economic Study of the Consumption of Milk and Cream in Vancouver by CHARLOTTE I. JOHNSTON and W. C. HOPPER (Ottawa, Dominion Depart- ment of Agriculture, 1938 and 1940 respectively).

tChecks which have been made on surveys of this kind indicate that on the average housewives tend to overstate their consumption of milk by possibly 10 per cent and in some cases as high as 15 per cent. If the reported consumption were adjusted for this over-estimation the average daily consumption would be closer to six-tenths of a pint.



Income and Food Consumption 489

purchased product such as canned milk, cheese, bread, and ice cream, nor does it include skim milk or buttermilk which has been purchased, but only the fluid milk purchased or brought into the home in that form.

Approximately 62 per cent of the fluid milk used in these city households was used as a beverage.

In a study of the purchases of food by wage-earner families in twelve

representative cities of Canada by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics the actual purchases of fluid milk each day during one week between October 3 and November 10, 1938, were recorded by housewives in 1,569 families. The results of this study show that the average consumption of fluid milk ranged from 0.53 of a pint per person per day amongst French-speaking families in Montreal to 0.74 of a pint amongst families other than those of British origin in the city of Winni- peg (Table II). The daily per capita consumption in the cities of Halifax, Saint John, and Quebec was less than six-tenths of a pint while in Ottawa; London, and Saskatoon the average was more than seven-tenths of a pint.

TABLE II DAILY PER CAPITA PURCHASES OF FLUID MILK BY 1,569 CITY WAGE-EARNER FAMILIES

DURING THE PERIOD FROM OCTOBER 3 TO NOVEMBER 10, 1938, IN VARIOUS CITIES OF CANADA*

Actual per capita Number of purchases of fluid

City families milk per day (pints)

Charlottetown ............................. .. 62 .65 Halifax........................................ 89 .56 Saint John .... .. ................ 86 .57

Quebec-French-speaking........... ............ 86 .54

Montret--French-speaking.................. 130 .53 English-speaking................... 75 .64 Other........................... 42 .61

Ottawa.............................. ....... 106 .71 Toronto ............... .................. 163 .64 London . ..... ....................... 80 .71 Winnipeg-British......... .......... . 188 .66

Other......................... 43 .74 Saskatoon .... .. 126 .71 Edmonton......................... . . 107 .67 Vancouver................................. 186 .68

*Calculated from Dominion Bureau of Statistics mimeograph report on "Family Living Expenditures in Canada-Canadian Urban Wage-Earner Family Purchases of Foods" (Ottawa, 1939).




Fluid Milk Consumption in Villages. No adequate data are available on the consumption of milk in towns and villages of Canada. Information was collected by personal interviews from housewives representing 251 families in three villages in 1935. One of these villages is in Ontario, one in Quebec, and one in Alberta. In two of these places the per capita consumption of milk was very similar to that in nearby cities, but in St. Romuald the reported consumption was only 0.40 of a pint per day (Table III). This Quebec village, at the time of the survey, had many

TABLE III

DAILY PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF FLUID MILK IN THREE CANADIAN VILLAGES, 1935*


Number of Number of reported by Village households persons housewives

(pints)

Villages Uxbridge, Ontario........... 102 345 0.73 St. Romuald, Quebec .......... 48 287 0.40 Claresholm, Alberta............ 101 432 0.70

Total or average ............. 251 1,064 0.63

*From Publication 608, Dominion Department of Agriculture, Ottawa.

unemployed families and the reported consumption is probably not

representative of villages in the province of Quebec as a whole. Further studies of milk consumption in towns and villages in Canada would be desirable.

Fluid Milk Consumption in Rural Areas. With the co-operation of Home Economic Extension Workers in the various provinces a study was made in 1937 of the consumption of milk and other dairy products in rural households in the various provinces of Canada. Questionnaires were distributed by these provincial workers to representative rural homes and after they were completed they were returned by mail. The

daily average per capita consumption of fluid milk of all kinds in the

1,823 farm households from which information was obtained was 1.37

pints. This was made up of 1.09 pints of whole milk, 0.20 of a pint of skim milk and 0.08 of a pint of buttermilk. There was considerable variation between provinces but the average consumption of all fluid milk in farm households for every province was greater than one pint per person per day. In rural households other than those of farmers the




average per capita consumption of all fluid milk was 1.07 pints per day. In three provinces, namely, Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia, the average was less than one pint per person per day but in all other

provinces the average was more than this quantity. Although the average consumption of fluid milk (of all kinds) in more

than 2,600 rural Canadian households was in excess of one pint per person per day, in 28 per cent of the farm households the average per capita consumption was less than one pint per person daily and five per cent used less than half a pint per person daily. In rural households other than farmers' 50 per cent of the households had a per capita con-

sumption of less than one pint per day and 12 per cent used less than half a pint per person daily.

Household Income and Fluid Milk Consumption. The most important factor determining the consumption of milk in urban homes is the family income (Table IV). In the study made of the consumption of milk in

TABLE IV

DAILY PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF MILK AS RELATED TO FAMILY INCOME, 3,207 RURAL AND URBAN FAMILIES* IN THE PROVINCES OF QUEBEC,

ONTARIO, AND ALBERTA, 1935


Number of Number of reported by Family income families persons housewives

(pints)

On relief..................... 189 921 0.54 Under $1,000 ................... 1,263 5,868 0.69 $1,000-$2,000 ................... 1,060 4,978 0.76 $2,000-$4,000.................. 544 2,486 0.81 $4,000 and over. ................. 151 826 0.95

Total or average ................. 3,207 15,079 0.74t

*2,600 were in cities. tWhen adjusted for overestimates of 10 per cent by housewives this figure would

be approximately 0.67 of a pint.

3,207 families in the provinces of Quebec, Ontario, and Alberta, results of which are shown in Table IV, low income families had a much smaller average consumption of milk than families with high incomes. The consumption by persons varied from 0,54 of a pint for families on relief




to 0.95 of a pint for families with incomes of $4,000 and over. A study made in the city of Vancouver gave similar results (Table V).

If the daily per capita consumption of milk in all. urban homes in Canada were raised to one pint per person per day from the present

TABLE V

DAILY PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF MILK IN EACH HOUSEHOLD INCOME GROUP, 1,082 HOUSEHOLDS, VANCOUVER, 1936

Household income Per capita consumption (pints)

Relief ............................. 0.59 Less than $1,000..................... 0.60 $1,000-$1,999....................... 0.68 $2,000-$2,999 ..................... 0.70 $3,000-$3,999........................ 0.73 $4,000 or more...................... 0.78 Not stated........................... 0.44

Average............................. 0.65

average consumption of about 0.65 of a pint as given in the surveys of fluid milk mentioned above, the increase in production of fluid milk needed to supply the additional quantity would be approximately 1,050,000 quarts daily. An average of one pint per person per day is considered by nutritionists to be essential to health. This increased

quantity would go largely to families in the low income and lower middle- class homes.

According to dietitians one quart of milk is equal in food value to about four ounces of cheese. Therefore, this additional quantity of milk would be equal to approximately 275,000 pounds of cheese daily or approximately 97,000,000 pounds per year. This volume represents about two-thirds of the quantity of cheese which Canada hopes to send to the United Kingdom this year, and about 17 million pounds more than the exports of cheese from Canada in the years previous to the outbreak of war. If the deficiency in milk were made up by the con-

sumption of cheese it would take most of the cheese that is being exported to supply the quantity required. If it were not possible to maintain the exports of cheese at their present levels, a considerable part of the amount now available for export could be diverted to domestic con-

sumption in the form of milk or cheese in order to provide adequate diets for all the urban families in Canada.

There is little evidence to show that apart from income, the occu-




pation of the head of the household has any effect on the quantity of milk purchased and used in the home. From the data on milk consumption obtained from representative households in Vancouver in practically every occupational group, whether it be professional, business executive, or unskilled labour, it was found that the families with the lowest per capita incomes used the smallest amount of milk and as the incomes rose the amount of milk consumption per person showed a fairly regular increase (Table VI).

TABLE VI

DAILY PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF MILK IN HOUSEHOLDS WITH DIFFERENT PER CAPITA INCOMES OF WHICH THE CHIEF WAGE-EARNERS WERE

ENGAGED IN DIFFERENT OCCUPATIONS, VANCOUVER, 1936

Occupation Annual

per capita* Executive- Executive- Skilled Unskilled income Professional large business small business labour labour

(pints) (pints) (pints) (pints) (pints)

Less than $300.... 0.68 .... 0. 9 0.65 0.57 $300-$599........... 0.75 0.72 0.73 0.72 0.68 $600-$899 .......... 0.76 0.74 0.80 0.61 0.83 $900 or more........ 0.94 0.82 .... .... ....

Average............ 0.76 0.74 0.63 0.68 0.61

*Per capita income is calculated by dividing the household income by the number of persons in the household, for example, if the household income were $2,500 a year and there were five persons in the household, the annual per capita income would be $500.

Nationality and Fluid Milk Consumption. The nationality of the family appears to have much less effect on the quantity of milk consumed than the income of the family. In four groups of families of different nationalities in Quebec, Ontario, and Alberta, the smallest average consumption of milk per person was found amongst the low income households and as income rose there was a steady increase in milk consumption per person in all national groups where there was a sufficient number of families for the results to be significant.

Consumption of Fluid Milk by Children. Income has a decided effect on the milk-drinking habits of children. Because of the importance of milk in the diet of children a special effort was made in the surveys conducted by the Economics Division to learn the amount of milk used as a beverage by boys and girls of different ages in Canadian cities. The facts revealed in Table VII are significant. The figures in this Table




TABLE VII RELATION BETWEEN FAMILY INCOME AND NON-CONSUMPTION OF MILK AS A BEVERAGE

BY 5,047 CHILDREN OF VARIOUS AGE GROUPS IN THE CITIES OF

OSHAWA, QUEBEC, CALGARY, AND VANCOUVER, 1935*

Percentage of children not drinking milk

Total BoYs GIRLS chil- Total Total Total

Family income dren Under for Under for for all 6 6-12 13-16 boys 6 6-12 13-16 girls chil-

years years years years years years dren

City of Oshawa On-relief....... Under $1,000... $1,000-$2,000... $2,000-$4,000t..

Total............

City of Quebec On relief....... Under $1,000... $1,000-$2,000... $2,000-$4,000... $4,000 and over.

Total............

City of Calgary On relief....... Under $1,000... $1,000-$2,000... $2,000-$4,000o..

Total ...........

City of Vancouver On relief....... Under $1,000... $1,000-$2,000... $2,000-$3,000... $3,000-$4,000?..

72 458 397 100

20 17 12 11

15 27 25

33 47 24

14 17

21 27 19 14

8 11 5 6

25 31 21 35

13 44 30 11

15 27 17 20

18 27 18 16

1,027 14 23 34 22 7 26 34 21 21

142 22 42 91 41 32 50 69 44 43 631 15 38 48 31 17 44 52 34 32 611 8 23 20 16 10 28 34 24 20 280 2 3 23 6 6 9 40 14 9 151 10 6 5 7 7 10 15 11 8

1,815 11 24 33 20 15 29 41 26 23

125 19 38 42 32 36 34 18 30 31 273 14 27 42 19 12 27 61 31 24 393 3 8 25 9 4 13 32 17 12 229 6 8 20 10 0 11 19 10 10

1,020 8 18 30 14 9 18 33' 20 16

127 14 18 38 19 4 12 56 16 17 453 6 24 22 17 7 29 46 26 22 464 0 6 14 6 3 6 25 9 8 104 13 17 22 18 0 5 25 11 14 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 5 3

Total ........... .1,185 5 15 18 13 5 15 35 17 15

*From Publication 608, Dominion Department of Agriculture, Ottawa. tIn the income group, $4,000 and over, there were 30 children all consuming milk. tIn the income group, $4,000 and over, there were 47 children all consuming milk. ?In the income group, $4,000 and over, there were 16 children all consuming milk.



Income and Food Consumption

were compiled from statements made during personal interviews in 3,684 households. The first fact of importance shown by the Table is that more than 20 per cent of the children (16 years of age and under) in the households interviewed in Oshawa and Quebec City drank no milk. In Calgary 16 per cent and in Vancouver 14 per cent of the children did not use milk as a beverage. With few exceptions the proportion of children not drinking milk varied with age and family income. In all cities the larger the family income the smaller the proportion of children not using milk as a beverage; the younger the children the

larger the proportion drinking milk. It should be noted particularly that many teen-age children in cities

did not drink milk. Nutritionists point out that teen-age children

require more milk than younger children except those under one year of

age. Approximately one-third of the children in the age group of 13 to 16 years on the average drank no milk. In low income families having less than $1,000 a year, from 40 to 60 per cent in this age group drank no milk. Even amongst the high family income groups many of the children between 13 and 16 years of age drank no milk.

In Calgary and Quebec City a smaller proportion of the children in the families on relief drank milk than did those in other family income

groups. In the city of Quebec, 22 per cent of the boys and 32 per cent of the girls under 6 years of age in relief families who were interviewed drank no milk, and the proportion not drinking milk in relief families was

higher where the children were older. In the main there was little difference between the proportion of boys and girls not drinking milk but in three of the four cities mentioned there was a slightly larger percentage of girls than of boys not using milk as a beverage.

Not only did a smaller percentage of the children in the low income families drink milk but the amount drunk by children who drank the milk was less in the lower income than in the higher income households. This is shown by the study of milk consumption in Vancouver (Table VIII). The average consumption of milk by children under six years of

age ranged from about one pint per child per day in the families on relief to two pints per child per day in families with per capita incomes of $900 or more. The range for children of six to twelve years of age was from 0.85 of a pint in relief families to 1.50 pints in families in the higher income group. For children from 13 to 16 years of age the range was from 0.76 of a pint to 1.83 pints daily.

Consumption of Fluid Milk by Adults. Adults in high income families used more milk as a beverage than those in low income families. In 3,207 homes in urban and rural areas of the provinces of Quebec, Ontario, and Alberta the range in percentage of adults drinking milk was from

495




21 per cent foradults in households with an income of less than $1,000 a year to 32 per cent in households with incomes of $4,000 and over. In 1,082 representative households in Vancouver, the proportion of adults drinking milk rose from about 10 per cent in households with incomes of less than $1,000 a year to 22 per cent in households with incomes of $4,000 or more.

TABLE VIII

AVERAGE DAILY CONSUMPTION OF MILK BY CHILDREN OF DIFFERENT AGES DRINKING MILK IN 1,082 HOUSEHOLDS IN VARIOUS INCOME GROUPS

VANCOUVER,1936

Children Children Children under 6 years 6-12 years 13-16 years

Per capita income of age of age of age (pints) (pints) (pints)

Relief............ 1.04 0.85 0.76 Less than $300............. 1.09 0.87 0.90 $300-$599 ...... 1.29 1.18 1.11 $600-$899............. . 1.38 1.35 1.12 $900 or more............. 2.00 1.50 1.83

Average................... 1.16 0.98 1.00

Income and Grades of Milk Purchased. According to information obtained in Vancouver where different grades of milk are available the milk with the highest percentage of butterfat was used to the greatest extent by the higher income families while the lowest grade of milk was used to the greatest extent by the lower income families.

Income and Education. Education as to the value of milk in the diet should result in some increase in milk consumption but many housewives in the lower income families realized that they did not buy sufficient milk. The amount of money available for milk at present prices appears to be the most important factor restricting the quantity of milk purchased by low income households in our cities. In Vancouver, housewives in more than 1,000 homes were asked why they did not buy more milk. Two answers were given most frequently to this question-first, they were now buying sufficient and, second, they could not buy more because of the high cost of milk. Only 21 per cent of the housewives of the families on relief said-they now were buying sufficient milk and 71 per cent said the cost of milk prevented them from buying more. Only 49 per cent of the housewives in the families with incomes per person of less than $300 said they now were purchasing sufficient milk and 41 per




cent said the cost of milk prevented them from buying more. About 71 per cent of the housewives in the families with incomes per person of $300 to $599 stated they purchased sufficient milk and 13 per cent said the cost of milk was the reason for not buying more. Nearly 80 per cent of the housewives in households with incomes per person of $600 or more stated they were now buying sufficient milk and only 2 per cent said the

price of milk prevented them from purchasing a larger quantity.

TABLE IX

WEEKLY PURCHASES OF FRESH MILK PER PERSON BY WAGE-EARNER FAMILIES

IN RELATION TO FAMILY INCOME PER PERSON-AVERAGES FOR MONTREAL (FRENCH),

TORONTO, WINNIPEG, AND VANCOUVER FAMILIES IN OCTOBER-NOVEMBER, 1938*

Milk purchased Annual income per person per week

(pints)

$100-$199.................. ............ 3.50 $200-$299 .......................... 4.44 $300-$399........................... 4.32 $400-$499............................... 4.70

*Canada, Dominion Bureau of Statistics, Family Income and Expenditure in Canada, 1937-8, a study of urban wage-earner families, p. 62.

Consumption of Fluid Milk by Wage-earners. The study made by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics in 1937-8 also reveals the relationship between income and purchases of fresh milk (Table IX). Increased consumption of milk by families on higher income levels resulted in pronounced advances in calcium supply (Table X).

TABLE X

CALCIUM AVAILABLE FROM MILK PURCHASES* AT PROGRESSIVE INCOME PER PERSON

LEVELS IN RELATION TO CANADIAN DIETARY STANDARD REQUIREMENTSt

-Income per person-

$100- $200- $300- $400- $500- $600 $199 $299 $399 $499 $599 +

Calcium from milk as percentage of standard re- quirements ............ 49.3 64.8 68.3 80.6 88.6 93.1

*Does not include condensed and powdered milk or fresh cream. tCanada, Dominion Bureau of Statistics, Family Income and Expenditure in Canada

i937-8, p. 144.

497




Consumption of Cheese. Studies of cheese consumption in urban and rural areas of Canada show that except for rural cheese-producing areas more cheese is used by city households than by rural households. Cheese consumption was particularly low among rural families in the four most easterly provinces of Canada.

According to these studies the proportion of farm families using no cheese of any kind during 1937 was as follows: Prince Edward Island, 62 per cent; Nova Scotia, 37 per cent; New Brunswick, 61 per cent; Quebec, 52 per cent; Ontario, 29 per cent; Manitoba, 27 per cent; Saskatchewan, 43 per cent; Alberta, 47 per cent; British Columbia, 35 per cent; all provinces, 46 per cent.

The proportion of rural households other than those of farmers using no cheese at all during 1937 were as follows: Prince Edward Island, 42 per cent; Nova Scotia, 51 per cent; New Brunswick, 58 per cent; Quebec, 38 per cent; Ontario, 26 per cent; Manitoba, 31 per cent; Saskatchewan, 31 per cent; British Columbia, 22 per cent; all provinces, 37 per cent.

Information obtained from 2,602 representative city households in Quebec, Oshawa, and Calgary in 1935 indicated that in general there was some relationship between household income and per capita consumption of each kind of cheese with the exception of cottage and cream up to a household income of $4,000 at which point a decline in consumption occurred.

In Oshawa the per capita consumption of cheese in the lower income families was less for mild cheddar, processed, and imported cheese than in the higher income households but the reverse was true for strong cheddar, cottage, and cream cheese. In Quebec City, people in low income households used less of all classes of cheese but in Calgary there was little relationship between the consumption of cheese and family income.

Consumption of Butter. 'There appears to be a direct relationship between family income and purchases of butter. In the Dominion Bureau of Statistics report on expenditures by wage earners it is shown that as income per person increased amongst 667 representative wage-earner families in Montreal (French), Toronto, Winnipeg, and Vancouver, purchases of butter increased. Weekly purchases per person amounted to 0.52 of a pound in families with annual incomes per person of $100 to $199, 0.59 of a pound where the incomes per person were from $200 to $299, 0.61 of a pound with incomes per person of $300 to $399 and 0.70 of a pound in families with incomes per person of $400 to $499.

A study made in 1939 by the Dominion Department of Agriculture indicates that low income families will use more butter if they receive it




free or at a reduced price. During that year about three million pounds of surplus butter were distributed by the Canadian Red Cross and other welfare agencies to urban families on relief and to those on low incomes. Information was obtained from 731 families on the quantities of butter purchased and received free of charge during the period of distribution of surplus butter in eleven Canadian cities. Of these 731 families 260 were families on wages and the balance represented families on relief or on partial relief. In addition to obtaining information on the quantities of butter used during the period of distribution of surplus butter, information was also obtained on the consumption of butter before and after this period.

Under the plan of distribution of surplus butter a family on relief was

required to purchase the usual amount of butter through ordinary relief channels and for each pound received in that manner, they exchanged a voucher which was obtained from the Canadian Red Cross for an additional pound. In this way it was expected that the butter consumption of relief families would be doubled. This plan was not strictly followed in all cities. In the case of low income families, not on relief, vouchers were exchanged for their face value in butter without the recipient being required to purchase an equal amount. The object of this arrangement was not only to make additional butter available to these low income families but to release money that ordinarily was spent for butter for the purchase of other food necessities. Both the relief and non-relief groups received on the average 0.50 of a pound per person per week without charge and the increase over former consumption was 64 per cent for the relief group and 40 per cent for the group on wages.

Consumption of Eggs. In conjunction with studies of meat, milk, and cheese consumption, information was obtained on the consumption of eggs for 4,662 city households in the cities of Saint John, Quebec, Montreal, Oshawa, Calgary, and Vancouver. When the households which were interviewed in these various cities were divided according to household income and the consumption of eggs (in all forms) in each group calculated, some relationship between income and egg consumption was revealed (Table XI). The average annual consumption per person was 13 dozens in families on relief, 19 dozens in families with incomes of less than $1,000 a year, 21 dozens in families with incomes of $1,000 to $1,999 a year and 22 to 23 dozens in families with incomes above $2,000 a year. The average for all incomes was 20 dozens per person per year.

Approximately 30 dozens of eggs per year or an egg a day is recom- mended by nutritionists for an adequate diet. In 75 per cent of the households, which contained about 80 per cent of the persons in the families from which information on egg consumption was obtained, less

499




than 30 dozens per person per year were used. If the average consumption of all urban people in Canada were increased to 30 dozens of eggs annually it would be necessary to supply city households in Canada with an additional 60 million dozens of eggs each year, which is about double the quantity of fresh eggs being exported to the United Kingdom in dried form.

TABLE XI

ANNUAL CONSUMPTION OF EGGS PER PERSON BY HOUSEHOLD INCOME GROUPS IN SAINT JOHN, QUEBEC CITY, MONTREAL, OSHAWA, CALGARY,

VANCOUVER, 1935-6

Number Average Consumption of number in per person

Household income households household (dozen)

Relief........................... 367 4.9 13 Less than $1,000 ................ 1,594 4.3 19 $1,000-$1,999 ................... 1,615 4.5 21 $2,000-$3,999................... 870 4.5 23 $4,000 or more................... 214 5.4 22 Unstated........................ 2 ....

Total or average ................ 4,662 4.5 20

The study made by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics already mentioned showed that during October and November, 1938, weekly purchases of eggs per person in households with different incomes per person were as follows:

TABLE XII

WEEKLY PURCHASES OF EGGS PER PERSON IN RELATION TO FAMILY INCOME PER PERSON, OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER, 1938

Eggs purchased Annual income per person per week

(dozen)

$100-$199 .. ...... 0.19 $200-$299......................... 0.25 $300-$399. 0.29 $400-$499.......................... 0.37

Consumption of Meat. Meat consumption in city households and income are definitely related according,to studies made in 2,060 representative households in the cities of Saint John, Montreal, and Van-




couver (Table XIII). Total meat consumption per person rose from 81 pounds for families on relief and 109 pounds for families with annual incomes of less than $300 per person to 170 pounds in families with annual incomes of $900 or more per person. The average for the 2,060 families was 123 pounds per person per year. If we place the urban

population of Canada at six million people and each one ate as much meat as the persons in the highest income group it would require close to three hundred million pounds more meat of all kinds to supply this urban population.

It will be observed by reference to Table XIII that per capita con-

sumption of lamb, bacon, ham, and poultry were directly related to income. Families on relief and those with annual incomes per person of less than $300 had a lower per capita consumption of beef than those on

higher incomes but apart from these two low income groups the con-

sumption of beef per person did not rise with income. It will also be observed that the consumption of fresh and salt pork was not related to income.

Analysis of the information obtained on lamb consumption when

analysed by the occupation of the head of the household showed that

apart from income, the occupation of the chief wage earner had little effect on the amount of lamb purchased. Families of executives of large business organizations and professional men whose incomes on the average were higher than those of other occupations, used on the average the

largest quantity of lamb, while families of unskilled labourers and un-

employed workers used the least. It was also learned that in families with approximately the same incomes per person of which the chief wage earners were professional men, managers of small businesses, and skilled and unskilled labourers, the quantities of lamb consumed per person differed very little (Table XIV). The larger average consumption of lamb in families headed by professional men was, therefore, largely the result of the fact that the average salary of the professional men was

higher than the average wage of the skilled and unskilled labourers. Information was also obtained in this study on the quality of the

beef used by low, medium, and high income families as shown by the kinds of roasts, steaks, and other cuts purchased. The data gathered showed that in the main the high quality cuts of beef are used to a much

greater extent by the higher income households and the lower quality cuts by the lower income households. A much larger proportion of the families in the groups with higher per capita incomes purchased oven roasts (porterhouse, sirloin, and rib) than those in the groups with lower per capita incomes in all three cities. On the other hand, pot roasts (rump, shoulder, and chuck) which are generally considered of lower

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TABLE XIII ANNUAL PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF VARIOUS KINDS OF MEAT IN EACH PER CAPITA INCOME GROUP IN

SAINT JOHN, MONTREAL, AND VANCOUVER, 1936* (in pounds)

No. Fresh Per capita of and

income house- Lamb Beef Veal salt Side Back Ham Saus- Liver, Poul- Canned Cooked Total holds pork bacon bacon ages etc. try meats meats

Relief.......... 187 4 44 9 9 2 1 2 6 2 1 1 ot 811 Less than $300.. 754 9 48 15 13 4 2 4 6 3 5 1 1 109t $300-$599.. 673 18 58. 15 12 6 4 4 6 3 12 1 1 141$ $600-$899 . 312 23 56 15 10 8 4 6 5 3 18 1 2 151 $900 or more . . 134 30 55 14 11 8 4 8 6 5 27 1 1 170

Total or average. 2,060 13 51 14 12 5 3 4 6 3 9 1 1 123t *Saint John, 492 households; Montreal, 488 households; Vancouver, 1,080 households. tNot more than 0.5 of a pound. -Because of the elimination of decimals in the number of pounds of the various kinds of meat their sum is not exactly

equal to the correct total number of pounds.

TABLE XIV

ANNUAL PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF LAMB IN HOUSEHOLDS GROUPED ACCORDING TO DIFFERENT OCCUPATIONS AND INCOMES, SAINT JOHN, MONTREAL, AND VANCOUVER, 1936

(in pounds)

Executive or small Professional business Skilled labourer Unskilled labourer

Per capita income Number of Per capita Number of Per capita ber of Per capi Number of Per capita

households consumption households consumption households consumption households consumption

Less than $300... 27 11.6 59 7.0 236 7.9 257 7.9 $300-$599 ........ 50 16.6 67 18.0 197 17.7 115 17.2 $600 or more...... 89 24.8 42 26.4 63 24.6 23 19.3

Total or average .. 166 19.0 168 13.7 496 12.4 395 10.1 * ... . . .. . . . .. . . ..~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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quality and, therefore, less expensive, were purchased to a greater extent by the lower income than by the higher income families in all three cities.

Even more striking differences were revealed by an analysis of the purchases of beefsteak by low and high income households. In Saint John, 94 per cent of the households in the highest income group of families purchased the better quality and more expensive steaks (tender- loin, porterhouse, sirloin, wing, and club), but only 21 per cent of the families on relief and 58 per cent of the families with a per capita income of less than $300 a year bought these kinds of beefsteak. The lower quality steaks such as round and flank were used to a somewhat greater extent by the lower income households than by households with higher incomes. In Montreal and Vancouver the relationship between per capita income and the percentage of households buying the various kinds of steaks was very similar to that in Saint John.

Hamburg was one of the forms in which considerable quantities of beef were purchased for consumption in low income households. In all three cities a very small proportion of the higher income households used hamburg but a substantial proportion of the low income households used beef in this form. Although soup and stewing beef were used to some extent by households in all income groups, in Saint John and Van- couver in particular these cuts were used to a considerably greater extent by lower income households than in the households with higher incomes.

The average annual consumption of side and back bacon per person in the 2,060 households interviewed was eight pounds. In Saint John the consumption was 11.1 pounds per person, in Montreal 5.4 pounds, and in Vancouver 7.9 pounds. If the per capita consumption of bacon in Montreal were equal to what it was in Saint John it would require more than 5Y million additional pounds annually to supply the people in Montreal alone. If we assume that eight pounds represents the average annual per capita consumption of all the urban people in Canada and this consumption were increased to the level of the consumption of higher income households, namely, 12 pounds per person which is only slightly above the average consumption of all families in Saint John, it would require for the 6 million persons in urban families 24 million additional pounds of bacon each year.

Consumption of Fish. The higher income city families use substantial- ly more fish per person than those on lower incomes (Table XV). This information on fish consumption was obtained when data on consumption of meat were being gathered in Saint John, Montreal, and Vancouver.

Consumption of Protein Foods. Urban families which used the largest amount of eggs also used the largest quantities of meat, fish, and cheese.

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In other words, the households which used the largest quantities of one

protein food also used the largest quantities of other protein foods. The

high consumption of protein foods of all kinds is, of course, in the higher

TABLE XV

ANNUAL PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF FISH OF ALL KINDS, IN RELATION TO PER

CAPITA INCOME, SAINT JOHN, MONTREAL, AND VANCOUVER, 1936

(in pounds)

Saint John Montreal Vancouver Annual

per capita Number Per capita Number Per capita Number Per capita income of con- of con- of con-

households sumption households sumption households sumption

Relief........ 58 16 60 8 69 17 Less than $300 171 21 236 14 347 21

$300-$599.... 124 27 130 20 419 24

$600-$899.... 75 32 1 43 33 194 26

$900 or more . 64 38 19 40 51 25

Total or average 492 24 488 16 1,080 22

income households. From these data we might logically conclude that if the low income families were supplied with greater quantities of

protein foods, which are also protective foods, it is not likely to result in any significant substitution for the protein foods they are now using (Table XVI).

Consumption of Vegetables. Studies of consumption of vegetables in Canada and the United States indicate that families on the higher income levels use more vegetables than those on low incomes.

Studies made by the Economics Division concerning the marketing of fruits and vegetables by retail stores in different income areas in a number of cities in Eastern Canada revealed that the smallest sales were made in the stores located in the lower income areas of the cities. Some of the

operators of these stores expressed the opinion that they would be glad if they did not have to handle any fruits or vegetables. The highest sales of fruits and vegetables were made in the higher income areas of these cities.

In the study made by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics already referred to there was a slight increase in the purchases of potatoes by

wage earners in the higher income levels during October and November,

1938, than by wage earners in the lower income levels. As potatoes,




when properly cooked, should be included in the category of "protective" foods, substantial consumption of potatoes by low income households should be beneficial to the health of these people.

TABLE XVI

ANNUAL CONSUMPTION OF EGGS, MEAT, FISH AND CHEESE PER PERSON IN

RELATION TO CONSUMPTION OF EGGS PER PERSON IN EACH HOUSEHOLD, IN CERTAIN AREAS OF CANADA, 1935

Consumption of eggs Number Average Consumption per person per person per person of number in

in the household households household Eggs Meat Fish Cheese (dozen) (dozen) (lbs.) (lbs.) (Ibs.)

0- 9............ 396 6.4 5 66 6 4 10-19............... 914 5.4 15 82 9 6 20-29............ 851 4.5 24 94 11 7 30-39 ............. 552 3.9 34 101 13 8 40-49................ 247 3.2 46 107 14 10 50 or more............ 152 3.4 64 118 13 10

Total or average...... 3,112 4.7 22 88 10 7

Consumption of Fruit. Purchases of apples in general increased as the income per person of the occupational group increased, as did purchases of oranges, grapefruit, and bananas by urban families in Nova Scotia, 1940-1. These facts were revealed in a study made by the Economics Division in co-operation with the Provincial Department of Agriculture. The higher income group which included professional and business executives purchased an average of 67 pounds of apples per capita and 57 pounds of citrus fruit and bananas during the seven months. This group included 138 households. The survey covered 368 families in the medium salaried group. Heads of households in this classification were mainly clerical workers and skilled labourers. This

group consumed 52 pounds of apples and 44 pounds of citrus fruit and bananas. Among the lower income group of wage earners, which numbered 108 families, apple consumption averaged 47 pounds per capita and citrus fruit and bananas, 35 pounds. In the high and medium income groups, apples made up 54 per cent of the combined weight of fruits purchased while in the lowest income group, apples were 57 per cent by weight of the fruit consumed. The size of income appears to have more influence on the quantity of fruit consumed than on the choice of fruit. That is, the survey indicated that apples were not used as a substi-

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tute for citrus among the various income groups even though relatively lower in price. People who have developed a liking for fruit, apparently desire variety.

Variations in purchases of apples, bananas, and canned peaches by wage-earner families on different income levels during October and November, 1938, in certain cities of Canada were as follows:

TABLE XVII

WEEKLY PURCHASES OF FRUIT PER PERSON BY WAGE-EARNER FAMILIES IN RELATION TO FAMILY INCOME PER PERSON, IN CERTAIN CITIES OF CANADA DURING

OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER, 1938

Fruit purchased per week

Annual income per person Apples Bananas Canned peaches (pounds) (pounds) (ounces)

$100-$199............ .......... 0.20 0.07 0.41 $200-$299....................... 0.23 0.20 0.58 $300-$399....................... 0.32 0.22 0.92 $400-$499 ................... 0.33 0.26 0.67

The higher income households purchased a larger quantity per person of apples, bananas, and canned peaches than families at lower income levels except that the highest income group bought somewhat less canned peaches than the second highest income group.

These studies of the consumption of protective foods indicate that the income of the city household largely determines the quantities of these foods which are available for the family table.

W. C. HOPPER Ottawa.



income and food consumption

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