Impact of Climate Variability on Household Food Utilization in Nigeria

Climate variability is the year-to-year variations of atmospheric conditions around a mean state or a measure of the frequency distribution of the value of climate variables and range over a given period of time. Changes in climate variability including temperature, rain, flood, drought and sunshine have the ability to damage irreversibly the nutrients in the different food resource bases on which households depend, so much that such households become food insecure. Household food utilization is the use of food and how a person is able to secure essential nutrients from the food consumed. It encompasses the nutritional value of the diet, including its composition, method of preparation and the social values of foods, which dictate what kinds of food should be served and eaten at different times of the year and on different occasions; and the quality and safety of the food supply, which can cause loss of nutrients in the food and the spread of food-borne diseases. Food utilization involves how food is used, how often meals are eaten and of what nutrients these consist. Constraints to food utilization include loss of nutrients during food processing, inadequate sanitation, improper care and storage, and cultural practices that negatively impact consumption of nutritious foods for certain family members. If food production and consumption in Nigeria is negatively affected by climate change, the livelihoods of huge numbers of the rural poor will be put at risk and may become susceptible to hunger and malnutrition. This forms the discourse of the paper which examines climate variability on household food utilization and change with seasonal variation in Nigeria.