A cultural perspective on cooking patterns, energy transfer programmes and determinants of liquefied petroleum gas use in the Andean Peru

Abstract In 2012, the Peruvian government launched the public-private initiative for energy inclusion (FISE) to promote equitable access to subsidised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders. The objective of this study was to explore cooking patterns, attitudes towards the FISE-programme, and factors influencing LPG use in rural Andean Peru. Forty-eight women from four communities completed a paper-based questionnaire on cooking practices and demographic characteristics. They partook in focus group discussions and participant observation sessions. In addition, we conducted 12 semi-structured, in-depth interviews with local authorities, FISE-programme contractor officials and male family heads. Despite the large outreach of the FISE-programme in the region, discrepancies in the administrative practices of public and private partners made it difficult for FISE-beneficiaries to obtain both LPG stoves and FISE-voucher discounts. The complications experienced by households not connected to the electricity grid may serve as an illustration of this lack of coordination. The FISE-programme inclusion criteria required a stable monthly electricity consumption of 30 kW-hours, thus excluding families with prepaid electricity meters living in remote areas. Overall, we found that the FISE-programme did not lead to exclusive LPG use in our setting. LPG was the second preferred source of cooking energy after firewood, and women only used LPG for preparing quick meals (e.g. soups) or for reheating meals. The main barriers limiting LPG use included purchasing costs; difficulties completing other daily chores while cooking; technologies not matching local cooking needs; the need to save time; and the perception that LPG affects the taste of food. Peruvian LPG programmes should harmonise their recruitment schemes, and the FISE-programme should modify its criteria to ensure the inclusion of all vulnerable populations. In view of the evidence obtained from other countries and the high prevalence of stove-stacking practices, LPG initiatives in rural Andean Peru merit from incorporating socio-cultural dimensions and alternative cooking technologies adapted to local fuel preferences, food cultures, and cooking demands in order to achieve a sustained LPG transition.