Can Agricultural Insurance Improve the Nutritional Status of Rural Residents?—Evidence from China’s Policy-Based Agricultural Insurance

Abstract

Based on the provincial panel data from 2008 to 2019, this paper constructs a mediating effect model to analyze the impact of China’s agricultural insurance development on the nutritional status of rural residents theoretically and empirically. This study found that agricultural insurance significantly affects the nutritional status of rural residents through two mediators: increased income level and the regional crop diversity. Meanwhile, regional heterogeneity exists in the impact of agricultural insurance on the nutritional status of rural residents. Overall, this paper argues that agricultural insurance should be one of the tools to improve the nutritional status of rural residents in China. Specifically, the design and implementation process of policy-based agricultural insurance should put the nutritional health of rural residents and their complex impact into consideration. Therefore, this paper suggests that even though agricultural insurance can facilitate rural residents’ income stability and generation, relevant stakeholders also need to draw awareness, popularize the importance of nutrition and health, and optimize the supply structure of agricultural products.