Acta Univ. Agric. Silvic. Mendelianae Brun. 2012, 60(4), 255-266 | DOI: 10.11118/actaun201260040255

Analysis of inequality in the consumption of foodstuffs and beverages - the example of the Czech Republic

Zdeňka Malá, Gabriela Červená
Katedra ekonomiky, Provozně ekonomická fakulta, Česká zemědělská univerzita v Praze, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6, Česká republika

The report focuses on the assessment of the rate of inequality in the consumption of foodstuffs and beverages by households in the Czech Republic. It analyzes the said inequality on the basis of data from the Family Account Statistics for the period of 2001-2009. The main methodical tools for the performed analysis are the quantification of the Gini coefficient of natural consumption and the consumption expenditures for foodstuffs and beverages of Czech households, the construction, quantification and verification of consumption functions. The obtained results evidence a greater balance in the consumption of foodstuffs and beverages than which is shown by the allocation of the overall expenditures or income of Czech households. At the same time, the said inequality in the consumption of foodstuffs and beverages is characterized by a slightly declining tendency in time. With regard to individual categories of foodstuffs and beverages, the greatest inequality can be defined in the case of dispensable commodities, which are consumed by quantitatively wealthier strata of the population, who are simultaneously willing to pay a higher price for them. Thus, for a number of commodities, we can note the greater quality of foodstuffs and beverages consumed by higher income groups. These commodities may primarily be characterized as having a greater price elasticity. On the other hand, there are foodstuffs in the case of which consumers react more flexibly to changes in income, but whose consumption is relatively stable. Therefore, inequality of consumption is not unequivocally associated with income elasticity, but rather with price elasticity.

Keywords: inequality, expenditures, consumption, consumption functions, Gini coefficient, foodstuffs, beverages
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Pieces of knowledge introduced in this paper resulted from solution of an institutional research intention MSM 6046070606 "The economics of resources in Czech agriculture and their effective utilization within multifunctional agricultural-foodstuffs systems".

Received: January 2, 2012; Published: August 7, 2013  Show citation

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Malá, Z., & Červená, G. (2012). Analysis of inequality in the consumption of foodstuffs and beverages - the example of the Czech Republic. Acta Universitatis Agriculturae et Silviculturae Mendelianae Brunensis, 60(4), 255-266. doi: 10.11118/actaun201260040255
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