Feeding the Poor? Spatial Patterns and Consumer Demographics in the Informal Food System of Metropolitan Santiago

Lissette Aliaga Linares, University of Texas at Austin

Food systems are closely linked to urbanization patterns. Recent research in Latin America has shown how globalization is affecting the population distribution by SES within main cities, and the capacity of these cities to connect with the local agricultural production. Still, there is little research documenting how segregation is affecting urban food systems. This paper intends to contribute to this field of research by analyzing the informal food systems in Santiago de Chile, composed mainly by street markets. Using census data from 2002 census and complete records of street market locations, a spatial analysis is performed in order to identify the demographics of the potential consumers of informal urban food systems. Comparing this data to a recent survey performed on street market consumers, I aim to test whether or not the socioeconomic segregation pattern is also manifested in a spatially segmented consumer market.