People in economically weaker states such as Bihar, Assam and Jharkhand spend about half of their monthly budget only on food items, according to the latest National Sample Survey (NSS).
On the other hand, those living in Kerala, Haryana and Punjab are left with a good surplus after spending on food articles, it said.
People in rural areas in both the cases end up spending a very high proportion of their budget on eatables, suggesting clearly that increase in food prices hit them the most.
In rural Bihar, the state with the lowest monthly per capita income (MPCE), 64.7% of total expenditure went for food, while the proportion stood at 52.9% in urban areas of the state as per data for 2009-10.
The key indicators of the 66th survey on household expenditure by NSS showed that monthly per capita expenditure (MPCE) in rural Bihar in was Rs 780 of which Rs 505 was spent on food items.
In urban areas of Bihar, the MPCE stood at Rs 1,238 of which spending on food contributed to Rs 655.
"The poorer the state, the more the expenditure on food. And this has been reflected in the NSS data, where we find that people in the economically poor states in East and North-East India have a higher food:MPCE ratio," Crisil chief economist D K Joshi said.
The indicators, released last week, said that the monthly per capita expenditure stood at Rs 1,053.64 in rural areas and Rs 1,984.46 in urban India in 2009-10.
Nationwide, 57% of the rural expenditure or Rs 600 went for food, while in case of urban areas it was 44.4% or Rs 881.
Households in rural Assam utilised 64.4% of their total MPCE on food. In urban Assam the expenditure for food stood at 52.9% of the MPCE, same as in Bihar.
The average MPCE in Assam was Rs 1,003 in rural areas of which Rs 646 went for food, while in urban areas the MPCE stood at Rs 1,755 of which spending on food was Rs 929.
Among the other states where the spending on food by households as percentage of total MPCE stood high were Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
In Chhattisgarh, food contibuted to 58.2% of MPCE in rural areas, while the proportion was 43.7% in urban areas.
For Orissa, the figures stood at 61.9% in rural areas and 48.4% in urban areas. In case of Jharkhand, it was 60.9% and 51.5%, respectively.
Food constituted 63.5% and 46.2%, respectively, of the total MPCE in rural and urban areas of West Bengal.
Food inflation, which was the main contributor to headline inflation in 2010, has moderated in recent weeks but still remain above 7.5%. Experts believe rise in food prices will hit households and even affect the calorie intake of poor people.
While poorer states reported high expenditure on food as percentage of total MPCE, even households in economically advanced states, as measured by total outgo, also spent at least 40% of their spending on such items.
In Kerala, the state with highest MPCE, people in rural areas spent 45.9% of total expenditure on food and the percentage in urban areas of the state stood at 40.2%.
People in rural Kerala had an average MPCE of Rs 1,835 in 2009-10, of which Rs 843 was spent on food items. In urban Kerala, the MPCE was Rs 2,413, of which Rs 970 went to food.
"Indian economy has not reached those kind of income level where food will become a small component of the total expenditure of households," Joshi said.
Similarly, in Punjab, where rural and urban MPCE stood at Rs 1,649 and Rs 2,109, respectively, spending on food contributed to 48.2% and 44.3% in rural and urban areas of the state, respectively.
Food constituted 54% and 43.1% of the total MPCE in rural and urban areas of Haryana, respectively.
In the case of Gujarat, expenditure on food items by rural people stood at 57.7% in rural areas, while it was 46.2% in urban areas.
Joshi said going ahead the percentage of food in total MPCE in India will reduce but still remain high as compared to advanced economies.
