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A study on national food security has put India at 66, much lower than its giant neighbour China, which is at 38, and some of the under-developed countries such as Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Malaysia, Honduras, Kazakhstan, Botswana and Guatemala. The study, covering 105 nations, has United States and Democratic Republic of Congo at the top and bottom positions, respectively.


 


With India expected to be the most populous country in the world by 2025, feeding the population is likely to be one of the serious challenges in the coming decades, the reports warns. ‘We do particularly badly on nutrition. We do not do so badly in other areas,’ was the statement from Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen after launching of the Global Food Security Index (GFSI) 2012 in New Delhi.


 


The study, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), reveals that 19 per cent of India’s population do not receive the minimum number of required calories for the average person, resulting in 224.6 million undernourished people. The undernourished in India consume on average 240 calories below the minimum daily requirement of 1,780 calories per person per day recommended by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.


 


The EIU, a business research unit of The Economist group, was commissioned by the US-based chemical company DuPont to bring out the Global Food Security Index. The GFSI ranks 105 countries in accordance to their relative level of food security in three categories – affordability, availability, and quality and safety.


 


‘We believe we can find science-based solutions to the global challenge of feeding the world by working with farmers, governments, NGOs and other corporations to maximize the yield from every acre,’ James C Borel, Executive Vice President of DuPont, said.



DuPont South Asia President Rajeev Vaidya said: ‘It should be used as a tool to help stakeholders make informed decisions that drive sustainable results at a local level.’ The company has called for local collaborations and science-powered innovations to address the challenge of the country’s food security.


 


The study points out that India’s food quality and safety score is constrained by the availability of Vitamin A and iron, consumption of which are below world averages. The food in India also contains relatively low quantities of quality protein. The average consumption of protein is computed as 37 grams a day, while consumption patterns in rich and poor countries significantly vary from 101.7 grams to 48.7 grams, respectively.


 


The GFSI 2012 also reveals that India spends just one per cent of its agricultural gross domestic product on related research, placing India near the bottom of the 26 lower middle-income countries in the index. Poor infrastructure also constrains India’s score for food availability.


 


On a positive note, the report acknowledges that while India’s R&D public spending is low compared with the size of its agricultural sector, the country spends a larger amount in public-private-partnership mode compared to other emerging markets.


 


Sen said that the 12th five-year plan would seek to add a PPP component to the Rashtriya Krishi Vikash Yojana. He said that the 12th plan would also lay special emphasis on creating formats to help small farmers come together in groups and work with the government and industry to enhance the nation’s food security. The plan is also expected to introduce a new scheme for sustainable agriculture.