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Food Security and Sustainability in India

Article  in  SSRN Electronic Journal · January 2011

DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.1745465

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 National Seminar on Emerging Trends in Entrepreneurial Development
Sponsored by UGC, New Delhi
Organised by
Dept of Economics, Besant Women’s College, Mangalore, Karnataka (INDIA)
On
January 22, 2011
FOOD SECURITY AND SUSTAINABILITY IN INDIA

(Picture Courtesy: www.rediff.com)

A Paper by
Dr V. Basil Hans M.A., M.Phil., PhD
Associate Professor & Head, Dept of Economics/Dean Faculty of Arts
St Aloysius Evening College
Mangalore – 575 003
Email: vbasilhans@yahoo.com
Mobile: 9845237602
Abstract
The problem of food security is de facto and global. While we look at the financial crisis we cannot
ignore the almost forgotten food crisis. India has revolutionised its agriculture but there is the
phenomenon of food mountains and lakes alongside poverty, malnutrition and ill-health. For an emerging
economy of India food insecurity is both an immediate tragedy and a threat to long-term well-being.
Eradicating hunger and ensuring higher quality foods is not going to be easy even as agriculture is
affected by climate change. However, agriculture forms part of the solution to climate change also. While
we expect ‘more’ from agriculture we also need to accept the fact that agriculture by itself is unlikely to
be able to eradicate hunger completely. Alternative strategies need to be (re)searched and adopted,
quickly and safely. People should be able to buy enough food, not necessarily that they become self-
sufficient. Need for a new matrix of food economics is apparent. Security also means safety for the
consumers and the environment, now and in the future. Questions of ecological fallout cannot be brushed
aside in futuristic strategies for the country’s food security. Food security has implications also for
people who are producers of food both at the farm and non-farm levels. Agriprenuers and all connected
with the food, nutrition and heath sectors are vital actors in the field game. This paper tries to analyse the
problem of food security from a multi-dimensional perspective with emphasis on the aspects of poverty
and sustainability. Besides looking at the varied dimensions of food security, the paper also evaluates the
present polices and possible options.

1
1. Introduction
An alarming problem in India today is food inflation amidst growing demands. 1 Production of
food is growing in case of few items and in case of others the growth has stagnated. The National
Development Council (NDC) in its 53 meeting recently adopted a resolution to enhance the
production of rice, wheat and pulses by 10, 8 and 2 MT respectively by 2011. The country
should reach these targets soon and the operationalisation of the proposed National Food
Security Mission (NFSM) is expected to deliver the goods. Two things are significant in the
context of food security: ensuring availability, affordability and accessibility of adequate food to
people throughout the country; and promoting entrepreneurship for sustainable food production
and supply. This paper is an attempt to look at the food security problem with emphasis on the
aspects of poverty and sustainability. Part II of the paper deals with the dimensions of food
security. In part III we discuss the strategies of food security. Part IV is the conclusion of the
paper.

II. Food Security – Dimensions

Food security happens when all people at all times have access to enough food that...
 is affordable, safe and healthy
 is culturally acceptable
 meets specific dietary needs
 is obtained in a dignified manner for all
 is produced in ways that are environmentally sound and socially just
Food security is a set of security, system and sovereignty. The food system includes...
 everyone who grows or catches food (farmers, fishers, and hunters
 earth, air, water, energy (the physical environment)
 food processors, packagers, distributors, marketers, and advertisers (food industry?)
 food wholesalers and the warehouses where food is stored
 the transportation system: trucks, planes, boats, trains
 places that sell food: grocery stores, markets, bakeries, farm stands, co-ops, restaurants
 places where food is served: hospitals, nursing homes
 governments, policies, taxes (the political and economic environment)
 the health care system, the workforce, schools, technology (the social, educational and
cultural environment)
 everyone who eats!

1
India faces ironies as extreme as its diversities. For a paradox in food front see, C.H. Hanumantha Rao,
Agriculture, Food Security, Poverty and Environment, Oxford University Press, 2006.

2
The food sovereignty is …
 the right of people and communities to safe, nutritious, culturally appropriate food, to
food-producing resources, and to the ability to sustain themselves
 the right of peoples and communities to define their own agricultural, labour, fishing,
food and land policies which are ecologically, socially, economically and culturally
appropriate to their unique circumstances.
We may now juxtapose food security and insecurity:

FOOD SECURITY FOOD INSECURITY

Farmers and fishers are skilled, enterprising Farmers‟/fishers‟ potential is
and innovative. They are proactive untapped/underutilised
agriprenuers

They get fair and stable income for their Their work and income levels are volatile
efforts
Food is produced in a way that is Health of the farmers and the consumers is at
safe/healthy for the people and environment stake (pollution, adulteration etc)

Food and nutrition are in-built to the system Unhealthy (junk) food has become a fashion
(passion?) – bad food vs. good food ala
Gresham‟s Law

Food distribution network is strong There are no farms or grocery stores nearby;
Local, regional and community food our food travels long distance to reach us
production is supported and coordinated
Social justice and inclusion are priorities Disparities and deprivation
Availability-Accessibility-Affordability Healthy foods cost more than the unhealthy
foods (food inflation)
All people are empowered to work together Food economy is under developed.
to create positive change in the food system Empowerment is wanting
and our communities

III. Food Insecurity – Magnitude

Poverty and food insecurity go together. In India food insecurity is also due to falling growth rate
in agriculture.
 The world‟s under-nourished population is 1 billion of which 800 million are in rural
areas
 FAO: the proportion of hungry people in developing countries rose from 16% in 2004-06
to 19% in 2009
 In India food grains production rose from 50 MT in 1950s to over 200MT by 2000, but
per capita availability rose from 395 grams/day to 500 grams/day (it fell to 445 grams in
2006)
 Indians get 68 kgs of milk and milk products per capita per year whereas Australians get
249 kgs

3
  Food grains stock is around 62 MT, annual requirement is about 20 MT, but over 200
million people are underfed
 Food insecurity is also with disparity Calorie consumption of the bottom 30% of
population has remained low (1626 kilocalories); top 30% consumes 2400 kcal
 More than 50% of children below 6 years and more than 30% of women are
malnourished
 Growth rate in agriculture has fallen from about 6% in 1992-93 to less than 3% in 2006-
07. Last year it was 0.2%
 Investment in agriculture fell from about 2% in 1990-91 to 1.7% in 2004-05
 Annual employment growth rate in rural areas declined from 2.07% in 1987-1994 to
0.66% in 1993-2000 (a period of liberalisation!)
 Fifty per cent of the food is lost between the farm and the table
 Obesity is problem in India too – junk food, food-nutrition food-exercise imbalance etc
 Climate change is a serious threat: agriculture is not only a victim but also a contributor
 Famine, desertification are also threats

IV. Strategies of Food Security

Global population in 2050 is predicted at 9 billion, output has to double with dwindling and
degrading resources. By 2030 India needs to produce 60 MT more rice than it does today. It is
quite a challenge for agronomists as well as policy-makers. Suitable strategies are required to
overcome vulnerability and have modernisation with moderation. A few strategies at this
juncture could be as follows
Reducing yield gaps and productivity gaps in agriculture – crop wise and area wise
(geo-specific food security)
Step up the tempo of food production. Have an agricultural growth arte of 4-5%
Imparting sustainable agricultural literacy throughout the country (e.g. farm schools,
farm clinics etc)
Business Implications should be communicated to the farmers – investment
management, capital expenditure, cost-benefit analysis
Promoting agribusiness along with organic farming, cost-effective and environment-
friendly methods (e.g. use of organic manure, bio fuels etc; withdraw synthetic
chemicals, resolve the issue of GM Seeds): bio-dynamic agriculture with value
addition
Agribusiness must include post harvest management also
Success of agribusiness requires bold measures of agri-entrepreneurship ranging from
crop management to food management, including knowledge management and
quality management

4
 Agri-entrepreneurship should be developed as a subset of social entrepreneurship
(e.g. collaborative farming), with environment-enterprise nexus that generates and
manages natural, material social capital, well
Economic and political actions should be pro-farmer, pro-nature, and pro-democratic
Synchronising technological reforms (e. cleaner and affordable technologies) with
institutional reforms
Hundred per cent financial inclusion should achieved: remove agrarian distress and
help risk mitigation – on farm and off farm, including graduating from micro
financing to macro financing – with emphasis on accessibility of intermediation
The country needs healthy doses of de-bureaucratisation and de-politicisation
Good Governance for food management, with increasing interest/initiatives by the
Civil Society for better production, management, delivery and research
Combination of gene revolution-gram (village)-revolution-green revolution
Scoping financial inclusion to capture accessibility meaningfully – solving poverty to
solve insecurity, finding new areas of operation for the Self Help groups (SHGs)
Developing comprehensive indices of food security and livelihood security (the latter
ranging from production to procurement to entitlement).
Understanding that developmental policy-making is can never be independent and
isolated – theoretically and practically. It is inter disciplinary and inter-related with
various social, ecological and developmental variables that are relevant and
sustainable for the economy in general and food security in particular.

V. Conclusion
Food security should be achieved at the individual, household, district, national and global
levels. India needs an Integrated Farming System (IFS) approach to take Indian agriculture to the
next orbit. There challenges other than environmental to tackle: Agri-infrastructure, Revitalising
PDS, MSP Policy, Subsidy Issue, SEZs, Packaged (processed?) food versus productive (healthy)
food, Ethnic Influences, etc. The average Indian farmer should be empowered – be able to
„decide‟, „develop‟ and „determine‟ options, plans and strategies like any other entrepreneur,
without of course any gender bias. Dignity of the farmer should not be compromised in any
strategy of food security. Government‟s proposed food security bill is getting delayed. Private-
Public Partnership is being initiated in some places as a viable model. All the stakeholders in
food security must have their task cut out – define goals, establish coordination.

5
 References
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Bhartiya, Abhishek, Ashvind Ratnakaran, B. Aditya Mohan, Bharat Banga Debarshi Ray,
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