코로나19 발생전ㆍ후 1인가구의 매식비용 변화 요인분석 = An Impact Analysis on the Expenditures of Purchased Food in Single Households since COVID-19

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study aimed to analyze the changes in purchased food (eating-out and delivery food) expenditures by single households before and after COVID-19 and determine the factors that cause the expenditure changes by applying regression models. Data from the ‘Food Consumption Behavior Survey’ in 2019 and 2020 by Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI) were used. Out of 616 single households, 8.8% did not consume any eating-out and delivery food during 2019∼2020. The proportion of eating out costs out of total purchased food expenses in single households was about 70% in 2019 and 2020. Only 18.1% of all single households had less eating-out costs but more delivery food costs after COVID-19, whereas 48.4% decreased both eating-out and delivery food, and only 11.7% increased both eating-out and delivery food since COVID-19. Single households with the highest purchased food in 2019 reversed into the lowest in 2020 by reducing eating-out and delivery costs. In contrast, single households with the lowest purchased food in 2019 became the highest purchased food costs. As a result of regression analysis, the main trend of changes in the purchased food costs in single households was that low-income, elderly, and rural single households had a worse diet after the outbreak of COVID-19. In addition, the higher the consumer’s knowledge-based capacity in single households, the more actively reducedthe purchased food was, while the higher the consumer’s income-based capacity, the more significantly increased the purchase food costs in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic. In conclusion, COVID-19 has deepened the polarization of single households by age, region, and income level.