Malnutrition is a multi-sectorial, multi-level problem that results from the complex interplay between household and individual decision-making, agri-food, health, and environmental systems that determine access to services and resources, and related policy processes.
Agricultural development has enormous potential to make significant contributions to reducing malnutrition and associated ill-health. With its close links to both the immediate causes of undernutrition (diets, feeding practices, and health) and its underlying determinants (such as income, food security, education, access to health services, and gender equity), the agriculture sector can play a much stronger role than in the past in improving nutrition outcomes.
The rationale for investing in Nutrition is globally well recognized – both as a critical development imperative, as well as crucial for the fulfillment of human rights- especially of the most vulnerable children, girls and women. It constitutes the foundation for human development, by reducing susceptibility to infections, related morbidity, disability, and mortality burden, enhancing cumulative lifelong learning capacities and adult productivity. Nutrition is acknowledged as one of the most effective entry points for human development, poverty reduction, and economic development, with a high economic return.
Globalization generates marketing systems that require food production to be intensified and standardized. Food production has become more capital-intensive and supply chains have grown longer as basic ingredients undergo multiple transformations before the final product. Value chains shift power from producers to retailers and supermarkets. Standardization benefits larger suppliers rendering global markets more difficult to access for smallholder farmers. Family agriculture and associated (agro) biodiversity are being marginalized, though smallholders continue to play a crucial role in supplying local markets with fresh and affordable agricultural produce.
The consequences of increasing globalization of value chains reach well beyond the agricultural production system: the emergence of fast food outlets and supermarkets, the intensification of advertising and marketing of industrialized products, and foreign direct investment in developing countries and accelerating urbanization, have translated into major and rapid shifts in dietary patterns. The consumption of low nutritional quality, energy-dense, ultra-processed food and drinks, and fried snacks and sweets has risen dramatically in the past decade. Therefore, there is a need for developing an inter-sector approach to promoting food and nutrition security.
Nutritious food is a human’s fundamental need. Hence, to address this subject matter of international importance, ASSOCHAM proposes to hold its “3rd National Conference and Awards on “Nutrition and Functional Foods” - Fortification, Food Security & Supply Chain on March 05, 2020, at New Delhi. This conference will provide the platform for global leaders; practitioners; scientists; farmers; organized agriculture; civil society; government policymakers, the private sector; and NGOs to discuss and share experiences on successes, and to deliberate the challenges and threats to nutrition &food with special focus on innovation, distribution & regulation.
The conference will focus on the following objectives:
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To attain Nutrition Security through Innovations like Food Fortification etc.
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To improve ways to reach the most vulnerable population with nutritious foods.
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To improve food and nutrition security through production systems.
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To strengthen institutional and policy environments, processes and incentives that foster appropriate forms of collaboration across nutrition-relevant sectors (such as food processing, health, education, etc).
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To strengthen and seek ways to make the regulatory framework as per our country’s needs.
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To disseminate the right information on the labels & packaging
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To align agricultural research investments to support nutritional improvements, such as more research on fruits and vegetables, animal source foods, nuts, and seeds.
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To focus on improving infrastructure for processing, storage, and preservation to retain nutritional value and food safety, to reduce seasonality and postharvest losses, and to make healthy foods convenient to prepare.
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To empower women and children for the achievement of the long term goals of food as well as nutrition security.
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To strengthen the food distribution system in order to eliminate the problem of food and nutrition insecurity.
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The Focus Areas are Equal importance to both quantity and quality: Since focus of the government and policies has long been on quantity of the food produced per year, quality of the food has fast emerged as the new area of concern, thus out of the box thinking is needed to balance both quantity and quality, helping government achieve production targets and creating positive impact on the health of the population.
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Innovation in Agri and food processing sector: To identify new innovations that can be adapted for commercial applications in the agriculture and food processing sector, keeping in mind the changes in lifestyle, thus achieving nutrition security.
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Achieving synergy across sectors: To find out ways to synergize the processes and programs of various departments and ministries directed at improving R&D, distribution, drinking water facilities, sanitation, and public hygiene, access to elementary education, nutrition, etc, for positive nutrition and health outcomes.
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Addressing issues of high wastage and pilferages: Ways to restrict wastage and pilferages needs a top priority. Hence the special focus on technology for best results needs to be explored.
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Focus on Dietary Diversification: A major challenge to food security comes from the dietary diversification of the poor. If cereal pricing is left to the market forces instead of being administered and the government playing the facilitating role, the land will be released from rice and wheat cultivation to meet the growing demand for non-cereal crops such as oilseeds, fruits, and vegetables in accordance with diet diversification.
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Focus on Regulatory framework: Making regulations keeping in mind our country’s existing systems and adapt to the changing times is the need of the hour. Hence, extensive brainstorming is required to work in a fast-changing environment.
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Insulation from Inflation: Finding out ways to insulate food prices to some extent from inflation is a most essential step, since rising food prices often result in a decline in food consumption, both quantitatively and qualitatively.
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Improvement in Food Distribution System: Faulty food distribution system poses a challenge. Hence reforms in the PDS system are a necessity since the inadequate distribution of food through public distribution mechanisms is also a reason for growing food and nutrition insecurity in the country.
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Women Empowerment: One of the very important issues that need to be addressed is that of Women’s empowerment through education and health. This is a prerequisite for achieving nutrition security in India since the mother’s awareness and education would have a positive spillover impact on children’s well being.
