To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether his Department is monitoring changes in dietary habits in regard to staple foods in (a) developing and (b) least developed countries; and if he will make a statement. (202768)

The Department for International Development (DFID) is monitoring changes in diet in developing and least developed countries. The Department does this in a number of different ways. We support global research by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and in particular the International Food Policy Research Institute. We support data gathering and analysis by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). We liaise with our own in-country and regional offices and carry out our own analysis of CGIAR and FAO information.