The Hindu Business Line - excerpts of article by Shailaja Fennel
(Picture - The Hindu Business Line)
The article discusses the role of the State in providing food and ensuring a functional food supply chain. The author states that India and China despite high growth rates are not taking care of the vulnerable population that is susceptible to hunger
To make the reforms more market-oriented, there is a need for more market based pricing rules. In India, public agricultural institutions dominate foodgrain procurement and delivery. The MSP 9(minimum support price) is regarded as an inefficient operation. And evident by the manner in which the 60MT grains is being managed. Only three fourths of the grain is stored efficiently. The remaining 25 percent is exposed to pests and other elements.
The focus has been more about the type of PDS and the neglect of the components of storage, and the logistics of foodgrain movement have remained virtually unchanged.
In India, the agriculture reforms focus exclusively on procurement and distribution of foodgrains within the framework of the existing agricutlure food chain. There has been limited analysis of how technology can help improve processed food or animal products that will become the major items of food consumption by the growing middle class. The importance of food standards and food safety is still not explored and can prove to be a threat to the food security of the country.
The challenge is how India will use the agriculture supply chain to deal with already existing problems of uneven coverage within the country and how it will move forward to ensure more and better quality food.
The article discusses the role of the State in providing food and ensuring a functional food supply chain. The author states that India and China despite high growth rates are not taking care of the vulnerable population that is susceptible to hunger
To make the reforms more market-oriented, there is a need for more market based pricing rules. In India, public agricultural institutions dominate foodgrain procurement and delivery. The MSP 9(minimum support price) is regarded as an inefficient operation. And evident by the manner in which the 60MT grains is being managed. Only three fourths of the grain is stored efficiently. The remaining 25 percent is exposed to pests and other elements.
The focus has been more about the type of PDS and the neglect of the components of storage, and the logistics of foodgrain movement have remained virtually unchanged.
In India, the agriculture reforms focus exclusively on procurement and distribution of foodgrains within the framework of the existing agricutlure food chain. There has been limited analysis of how technology can help improve processed food or animal products that will become the major items of food consumption by the growing middle class. The importance of food standards and food safety is still not explored and can prove to be a threat to the food security of the country.
The challenge is how India will use the agriculture supply chain to deal with already existing problems of uneven coverage within the country and how it will move forward to ensure more and better quality food.
No comments:
Post a Comment