Food and Poverty Thresholds

In first semester of 2018, a family of five needed no less than PhP 7,512, on the average, to meet the family’s basic food needs for a month in Ilocos Region. This amount is the food threshold. On the other hand, no less than PhP 10,684, on the average, was needed to meet both basic food and non-food needs of a family of five in a month in the region. This amount is the poverty threshold. These are 13.7 percent and 12.6 percent higher compared with the food and poverty thresholds respectively in first semester of 2015.

Food threshold is the minimum income required for a family/individual to meet the basic food needs, satisfying the nutritional requirements set by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) to ensure that one remains economically and socially productive.  On the other hand, poverty threshold is the minimum income required for a family/individual to meet the basic food and non-food needs such as clothing, fuel, light and water, housing, rental of occupied dwelling units, transportation and communication, health and education expenses, non-durable furnishing, household operations and personal care and effects.

Poverty among Filipino families and individuals

The poverty incidence among Filipinos families in Ilocos Region during the first semester of 2018 was estimated at 8.7 percent. This is defined as the proportion of families with per capita income less than the per capita poverty threshold to the total number of families. This was estimated at 20.4 percent in the same period of 2015.

Among the four provinces of the region, Pangasinan had the highest poverty incidence among families at 10.5 percent in first semester of 2018. The lowest poverty incidence was recorded in La Union with 3.7 percent in the same period. Meanwhile, Pangasinan also posted the highest poverty incidence at 23.0 percent during the first semester of 2015 while Ilocos Sur recorded the lowest at 15.0 percent in the same period.

The poverty incidence among Filipino individuals in the region during the first semester of 2018 was estimated at 11.8 percent. This is referred to as the proportion of the population living below the poverty line to the total population. During the same period in 2015, poverty incidence among Filipinos was recorded at 25.8 percent.

Pangasinan posted the highest poverty incidence among individuals at 14.3 percent, higher than the poverty incidence recorded in the region during the first semester of 2018. La Union recorded the least poverty incidence among individuals at 5.2 percent in the same period. Similarly, Pangasinan also had the highest poverty incidence among individuals during the first semester of 2015 at 29.6 percent. The lowest poverty incidence among individuals was recorded by Ilocos Sur at 18.2 percent in the same period.

The subsistence incidence among Filipino families in the region was estimated at 1.8 percent in the first semester of 2018. This is alternatively called as the proportion of Filipino families whose incomes fall below the food threshold. In the same period in 2015, the proportion of families who are food poor was recorded at 7.0 percent.

The highest subsistence incidence among families in the region during the first semester of 2018 was recorded at 2.4 percent by Pangasinan. La Union posted the lowest subsistence incidence with 0.6 percent in the same period. On the contrary,   La Union posted the highest subsistence incidence among families during the first semester of 2015 at 8.4 percent. Ilocos Norte posted the lowest subsistence incidence among families at 4.0 percent in the same period.

The subsistence incidence among Filipino individuals in Ilocos Region was estimated at 2.8 percent in the first semester of 2018 and 9.7 percent in the first semester of 2015. It refers to the proportion of Filipinos whose incomes fall below the food threshold.

By province, Pangasinan recorded the highest subsistence incidence among individuals at 3.8 percent during the first semester of 2018. In the same period, La Union recorded the least subsistence incidence among individuals at 1.0 percent. During the first semester of 2015, La Union posted the highest subsistence incidence among individuals with 11.3 percent while Ilocos Norte recorded with lowest at 5.1 percent.

In addition to the thresholds and incidences, the PSA also releases other poverty-related statistics such as the income gap, poverty gap and severity of poverty. The income gap measures the average income required by the poor in order to get out of poverty, expressed relative to the poverty threshold.  The poverty gap refers to the income shortfall (expressed in proportion to the poverty threshold) of families with income below the poverty threshold, divided by the total number of families. The severity of poverty is the total of the squared income shortfall (expressed in proportion to the poverty threshold) of families with income below the poverty threshold, divided by the total number of families.  This is a poverty measure that is sensitive to income distribution among the poor.

In the first semester of 2018, on the average, incomes of poor families in Ilocos Region were short by 19.4 percent of the poverty threshold.

At the provincial level, Pangasinan recorded the highest income gap at 20.0 percent during the first semester of 2018, which means that poor families in the province were short by 20.0 percent of the poverty threshold. This was followed by La Union and Ilocos Sur with 18.1 percent and 17.8 percent income gap respectively. On the other end, Ilocos Norte posted the lowest income gap at 17.1 percent during the same period.

Note: *Food thresholds are estimated using actual prices collected by PSA for the estimation of the Consumer Price Index (CPI). In consonance with the updating of the market basket for the collection of prices for CPI, First Semester 2015 Poverty Statistics were revised accordingly.

SGD. ATTY. SHEILA O. DE GUZMAN

(Chief Administrative Officer)

Officer-in-Charge