A food demand system based on demand for characteristics: If there is ‘curvature’ in the Slutsky matrix, what do the curves look like and why?

A food demand system is proposed based on demand for energy, variety, and tastes of foods. By specifying utility as an explicit function of these characteristics, the entire matrix of demand elasticities can be derived for n foods and one non-food from prior specification of just four elasticities, while avoiding any assumption of separability between foods. This framework can explain why poorest groups often are most price-responsive, but also...