Programas de transferência de renda e os efeitos sobre o consumo alimentar: evidências do Bolsa Família usando um painel de dados

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the impact of the Bolsa Familia Program on the per capita caloric availability of beneficiary households and on the quality of food. Additionally, it seeks to analyze the impact on households with children and adolescents, especially with children in early childhood. Food in the early stages of life plays a key role in the formation and accumulation of human capital. The longitudinal data panel constructed by Kern (2018) was used based on the AIBF I (2005) and AIBF II (2009) data. The model used was Differences in Differences, considering the characteristics of the sampling plan used in the AIBF survey. The main results show that Bolsa Familia contributed to increase the caloric availability of fruits and vegetables, as components of the fresh or minimally processed food group, mainly in households with children in early childhood. The program also contributed to reducing the consumption of alcoholic beverages among beneficiary families. However, there is an increase in the caloric availability of ultra-processed foods as an effect of the income shock arising from the program's transfers. It is concluded that food policies with more efficient actions for the distribution of nutritional information are necessary for a healthier diet.