Indian Express Editorial Summary
Editorial Topic : Food That Doesn’t Feed: Reducing Food Wastage in India
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Revision Notes
Food That Doesn’t Feed: Reducing Food Wastage in India
Introduction
- Food loss and waste (FLW) is a significant global issue with implications for food security and the environment.
- The United Nations has designated September 29 as the International Day of Awareness of FLW.
Global Scenario
- 13.2% of global food production is lost between harvest and retail.
- 17% of food is wasted between retail and feeding people.
- FLW amounts to about 30% of global production.
Benefits of Reducing Wastage
- Saving wasted food could feed all the hungry people in the world.
- It could reduce GHG emissions and energy usage, benefiting the environment.
- Reducing FLW by 50% can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals.
Food Loss in India
- India suffers food losses worth Rs 1.53 trillion annually.
- 12.5 MMT of cereals, 2.11 MMT of oilseeds, and 1.37 MMT of pulses are lost.
- 49.9 MMT of horticultural crops are lost due to poor cold chain infrastructure.
- Soybean has the highest post-harvest loss at 15.34%.
Farm Mechanization to Reduce Losses
- Combine harvesters can significantly reduce paddy losses.
- Overall paddy loss can drop to 2.84% with mechanization in harvesting and drying.
- Small and marginal farmers can benefit from group leasing arrangements and custom hiring centers.
Storage Infrastructure
- Proper drying and storage infrastructure is essential.
- Solar dryers and dehydrators offer a solution for reducing losses.
- Post-harvest losses account for approximately 10% of total food grain production due to poor storage infrastructure.
Policy Support
- Government of India has launched a major grain storage plan.
- Re-visiting the Jute Packaging Material Act can promote the use of airtight bags.
- Policy support is crucial for small and marginal farmers to access technological solutions.
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