Fish Consumption Pattern and its Association with Household Characteristics in Select Coastal and Non ?Coastal Districts of Andhra Pradesh

The purpose of this study was to explore the regional differences in the fish consumption pattern and its association with select household (Hh) characteristics, utilizing the survey data obtained from two districts of the state of Andhra Pradesh. The survey was carried out with representative samples from the non-coastal Tirupati and the coastal Nellore urban areas. The randomly selected non-vegetarian households representing each of the urban region was grouped according to religion, social status, occupational lifestyle and economic status. The sample consisted of 1200 respondents (700 Hhs from Tirupati and 500 Hhs from Nellore), who were responsible for food purchasing and cooking in the households. The fish consumption pattern was examined in terms of regional availability of fish, fish consumption habit, frequency and varieties of fish consumed. The results reveal that no significant association was observed between religion and fish consumption in Tirupati Hhs, whereas, a significant association (Pless than0.01) was evident for the Nellore Hhs. There was no significant association observed between social groups, occupational lifestyle and fish consumption when the data of both urban areas were assessed independently. A significant association (Pless than0.05) was observed between the family monthly income of the Hhs with respect to the fish consumption in Tirupati, no significant association was observed in the Nellore urban Hhs. The frequency and variety of fish consumption was high among Nellore urban Hhs when compared with Tirupati urban Hhs. Although a number of differences between households with respect to their fish consumption intake are uncovered, the findings suggest that fish consumption traditions and habits - accounts for large differences between the regions.