eng Science and Education Publishing Journal of Food Security 2014-11-27 2 3 87 91 10.12691/jfs-2-3-3 JFS2014233 article Mukete Beckline munasawa@gmail.com 1 Monono Samuel Kato 2 Department of Forest Management, Beijing Forestry University 35 Qinghua Dong Lu, Haidian District Beijing, China Community Service for Environmental Protection (COSEP), Cameroon; P. O. Box 76 Tiko, South West Region, Cameroon Food security is a major global issue with over a billion people believed to lack sufficient dietary energy access while others suffer from micronutrient deficiencies. Estimating food insecurity prevalence and patterns is tenuous since there exist no known direct methodology. This paper explores the factors that influence consumer food preferences hence exposing them to food insecurity. It draws on primary oral field data, livelihood surveys and documented socioeconomic activities that combine to create a range of different household livelihood outcomes. Over 400 respondents in six localities of Buea district, Cameroon were interviewed and cultural background, seasonal changes (variation), gender and purchasing power were strong factors driving consumer food preferences hence exposing them to food insecurity. http://pubs.sciepub.com/jfs/2/3/3/jfs-2-3-3.pdf food insecurity consumer behaviour Buea purchasing power socio-economics and foodstuff