Context matters: Oil palm production and women dietary diversity in the tropical forest of Cameroon

Oil palm is one of the most rapidly expanding food and cash crops in many tropical regions with significant environmental implications, but also economic gains. Previous analyses have established that this expansion is associated with changing gender roles and time allocation for women. Time allocation is an important determinant of maternal and child nutrition as well as wellbeing. However, few studies on the socio-economic implications of oil palm expansion have taken a gender focus. Here, we use a rich farm household data from a native oil palm production hotspot, Cameroon to examine the relationship between oil palm production and women dietary diversity. Using a couple of estimation and identification strategies with different sensitivity checks, we show that oil palm is associated with reductions in women dietary diversity measured both as minimum dietary diversity for women and the minimum adequacy diversity diet. These findings contrast with the literature that has established some positive dietary diversity implications of oil palm expansion in Southeast Asia. We explore heterogeneity in the various food groups consumed by women where we find consistent results that oil palm production is associated with the reduced consumption of mainly pulses, fruits and vegetables. We carefully discuss these findings and argue that context matters and may explain these differences. Particularly, we show that oil palm production is negatively associated with the cultivation of food crops which have been shown to be relevant for dietary diversity. That notwithstanding, we also confirm previous findings that highlight that oil palm production is income increasing. However, these gains are not associated with improved dietary quality and adequacy for women, possible owing to less autonomy and control over farm management and income. These insights are crucial and add to the debate on the implications of oil palm expansion in tropical environments. Moreover, they can guide policy in designing more tailored gender-equitable interventions that address intra-household issues and improve rural development.