The higher the consumption level of a household the less the likelihood of receiving food stamps. Rural areas have the largest proportion of households with beneficiaries in the FSP, representing 28.4 percent of rural households. St. Andrew had the smallest percentage at 5.9 percent, which is significantly less than the national average of 20 percent. The SLC reports that, children from the poorest quintile spend less time than their wealthier counterparts enrolled in school. Enrolment for the KMA was 94 percent in 1992 and 73.9 percent in rural areas.
Poor households employ a variety of survival strategies.
They diversify their income base to ensure economic survival by engaging themselves in non-farm activities where possible. The diversification of crops is also another strategy, with the cultivation of a mix of short term, annual and perennial crops on different parcels of land. Despite producing food staples such as yam, plantains and legumes, many farmers also use cash from the sale of these produce to purchase imported staples such as rice, salted fish and canned fish. Perennials and annuals like breadfruit, plantains, ackee, banana and a wide range of tropical fruits are used for household nutritional needs and are also harvested for periodic sales which improve cash flow of farmers. In some farming systems, farmers also keep livestock such as cattle, pigs and goats as a form of savings, making distress sales to meet unexpected financial demands or for festive occasions.