Agri-Food Systems In India
Introduction
According to the Committee on World Food Security of the United Nations,
food security is the state in which all people, at all times, have physical, social,
and economic access to enough, safe, and nourishing food that satisfies their
dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. Many factors,
including population increase, climate change, resource scarcity, economic
inequality, and geopolitical instability must be taken into account to attain
global food security.
Global food security is significantly impacted by population growth. The need
for food rises together with the growth of the global population. This implies
that to fulfil the demands of a growing population, the world food system must
produce more food. Nonetheless, there are worries over the viability of present
farming methods and the results of climate change on food production.
The agri-food industry can become more resilient to future outbreaks of
emerging infectious diseases (EID) like the current pandemic by undergoing
certain changes to the supply chain architecture. These changes also have the
added benefit of protecting the environment and the general public's health.
Depending on how we chose to respond to this epidemic as a society, we are
currently at a crossroads that will either lead us towards or away from a
trajectory of sustainable growth. Views on how to react to the current global
upheaval might be significantly divided. The state of Kerala started distributing
pre-prepared meal kits through the Fair Price Shops as an example of such a
reaction (FPS).
The food kits contain fixed quantities of 17 items such as flour, sugar, tea etc.
The kits help in the distribution of equal amounts of essential food items to
every poor household, prevent hoarding of goods and also limit crowding at the
FPS. Another measure included establishing community kitchens for serving
cooked food to the migrant labours and health-line workers. Student volunteers
and non-government organisations could be tapped while private organisations
could also be motivated by recognising “community kitchens” under CSR or
Corporate Social Responsibility activities during the pandemic. But schemes
such as PMGKY (Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Yojana) failed to gauge the
source of the problem, that free food distribution to the economically weaker
sections is practically not possible. Ensuring resilience within present food
systems against EID requires transformations at every stage of the supply chain
through the adoption of long-term adaption and mitigation measures similar to
the strategy used for dealing with climate change-related issues as opposed to
only post-outbreak measures. A shift towards agrarian sustainability through the
promotion of plant agrobiodiversity and crop diversification strategies can
enhance food security as well as enhance the financial security of farmers.
Conclusion
Maintaining the flow of supplies in the agriculture and food sectors, two of the
most important businesses along with health is crucial to prevent a food crisis
and decrease the negative consequences of a pandemic on the global economy.
Even though there haven't been any major problems with the networks that
deliver food yet, the future is still uncertain. Each country must thus
acknowledge the seriousness of the situation and periodically modify its
approach in light of the pandemic's development. The food supply chain's
problems should be addressed by the supply chain, which should be flexible
enough to do so.
With so many people losing their jobs and money due to the COVID-19
outbreak, the situation has gotten worse, making it much more difficult for
individuals to get food. Governments, corporations, and people must work
together to invest in sustainable agriculture, decrease food waste, and create
social safety nets for those who are in need to ensure food security. Working
towards a day where everyone has access to enough food that is also nourishing
and culturally suitable is morally required.
Indrajeet Jadhav
PRN: 1212220043
