Ankush Agrawal Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India

1. Availability of Food and Nutrients in India: The Food Balance Sheet ApproachICAS-VI, Rio de Janeiro, October 23-25, 2013 Ankush AgrawalIndian Institute of Technology Delhi, India

2. Background • Concerns regarding food and nutrition security • Global Hunger Index: 67/81 (severity of hunger in the country ‘alarming’) • Agricultural growth in the past: unstable in general although improved during recent period • Climate change: high dependence on monsoon • It is not just the overall production but the availability pattern too is an important determinant of the welfare of the poor • Nearly 43% of the children in the country are underweight • Nutrition deficiency among the adults • Important to have a reliable information base of nutritient production and availability

3. Objectives • Alternative food balance sheets for India • The food balance sheet is a comprehensive picture of the pattern of a country's food supply during a specific period • Estimates of availability of macro- and micro-nutrients in India. Specifically, trends and composition of nutrients • Consistency of the nutrient availability worked out in this paper with the food balance sheets prepared by the UN • Also, FAO food balance sheets do not provide estimates of micronutrients • Largely a supply side view

4. Methodology (1) • We group the food items in the following three categories • Field crops: foodgrains, nine oilseeds, and sugarcane • Animal and dairy foods • Horticultural crops: fruits, vegetables, and nuts • Physical production and availability • Nutrient production and availability

5. FAO estimates and the present study • Difference in nutritive values • Nutritive value of different food items vary perceptibly across countries • Dietary energy: the nutritive value used by FAO is lower for 69 and higher for 37 food items in the Indian case • Ambiguity on • Data sources, edible portion, ‘estimates made by the FAO staff’ • Corrections for processing • The reliability of estimates for India, being based on few samples from processing industries, is questionable • FAO estimates include tea, coffee, and spices but this study does not

6. Methodology (2) • Nutrients considered • Macronutrients: energy and protein • Micronutrients • Vitamins: B1, B4 and C • Minerals: Calcium, phosphorous, and iron • Sodium • Units • Energy: Kcal; other items: unit of weight (gms or mg) • Study period: 1990-91 to 2010-11 • Three year averages

7. Data • Data Sources • Food production; Seed, feed, and wastage; Imports and exports: Ministry of Agriculture of the Government of India • Minor difference with the FAO figures • Nutritive values of food items; edible portions: Gopalanet al. (1989) and other studies • Compatibility and related issues • Units of measurement (eggs, coconut, etc) • Variety (pulses)

8. Indices of growth for population and production of foodgrain, oilseeds and sugarcane

9. Physical Production and Availability(per capita per day) • Field crops • Foodgrains: decline in production and availability • The decline is mostly on the account of rice • Production of pulses and coarse cereals too declined • Animal and dairy foods • Production as well as availability increased steadily • Horticultural crops • Fruits: increase (banana, citrus, papaya and sapota) • Vegetables: increase (all except sweet potato and tapioca) • Nuts: stagnant

10. Nutrient Production and Availability (1) • Macronutrients • Dietary energy • Production: 2800 Kcal per capita • Availability: 2400-2500 Kcal per capita • Poverty line (2300) and RDA (2480) • Dietary energy available from cereals has declined though the same has been compensated by animal and dairy foods, and horticultural crops • Protein • Production: marginal increase (86 grams per capita to 89) • Availability: 73 grams to 76; RDA (58) • Increase mostly on the account of animal and dairy foods

11. Nutrient Production and Availability (2) • Micronutrients • Vitamins • No increase in availability of B1 and B4, availability of C increased • Availability higher than the RDA • Minerals • Availability of iron is stagnant • Increase in calcium, phosphorous, and sodium • Present availability of iron barely equals the RDA requirement

12. Sources of Nutrients: Energy

13. Sources of Nutrients: Protein

14. Sources of Nutrients: Micronutrients • Not much change is apparent in the composition during the last 20 years (hence 2009-10 figures)

15. Alternative Estimates of Availability Horticultural Crops ~90 Kcal

16. Dietary energy, protein and fat consumptionThe BRICS countries

17. Conclusion • The availability of macro- and micro-nutrients during the last two decades merely kept pace with the population growth • Dietary energy: stagnant • Protein: marginal improvement • Vitamins: B1 and B4 declined, C improved • Minerals: improvement, Iron: stagnant • However, ensuring food security to the masses in India is more a distributional or an access issue than the availability at the national level • Sources of nutrients • Shift from cereals • Compared to FAO, our estimates are slightly higher • Need for systematic studies on post-harvest losses, food processing, and stocks

18. Thank you Comments and Suggestions

19. Production and populationCompounded Annual Growth Rates

20. Production and populationIndices of growth

21. Availability of foodper capita per day (grams)

22. Availability of dietary energy, protein & fatsper capita per day