Dietary energy in the food supply

Definition

Dietary energy in the food supply (or dietary energy supply) is the amount of kilocalories per person per day that is available in a country's food supply. This indicator is based on national-level data from FAO's Food Balance Sheets.

Relevance

This indicator gives a sense of if a country has sufficient food to meet population-level energy (caloric) needs. However, it does not take into consideration the distribution and access to this dietary energy among different population subgroups, nor the varying levels of energy needs that exist among these groups.