I am writing this article on the future of the seed industry in India with a great sense of hope and optimism.
With a population of 1.2 billion, we contribute to almost 20% of the
world’s population with a growth rate that would soon lead us to become
1.8 billion strong by 2050. This leaves us with almost 60 billion more
mouths to feed with the existing resources of land and water within the
span of a mere 3 decades. But, a greater cause of worry is that we can
no longer take our depleting natural resources for granted as they are
fast disappearing because of increased urbanization, conversion of
agricultural lands to concrete jungles, and draining of our ground water
reserves.
Given all the constraints, it leaves a great responsibility and puts an immense pressure on the Indian agricultural system to produce more from the existing or rapidly disappearing resources. Let us look at certain possibilities whereby the production of agricultural products could be increased in order to address the challenges of 2050.
Reducing the post-harvest wastage which accounts to almost 30% in case of perishables:
Generally, about 30% of fruits and vegetables are rendered unfit for consumption due to spoilage after harvesting. India annually produces fruits and vegetables to the value of about Rs. 7000 crores and wastage may be in the order of about Rs. 2100 crores. This is a huge loss of valuable food, and therefore, it is important not only to grow more, but also to save what is being grown at high cost. Focus on the supply chain and logistics is the need of the day which would come with increased investments. A strong infrastructure needs to be developed in order to reduce the wastage %age and see to it that more food reaches the table from the farm.
High yielding and disease-resistant hybrids – GM crops – a way forward:
More focus on hybridization and increasing awareness among farmers and stakeholders on the use of high yielding hybrids would plug the demand-supply gap in the future. Embracing biotechnology and use of GM crops would put us on the road forward as GM crops would allow us to reduce the economic cost by a huge margin which would result in increased yields. However, a great effort would be required by both the private individuals and the scientific community in convincing the people of the advantages of GM crops.
Since, the motive of writing this article was to highlight the future scope of the seed industry, I wouldn’t like go into the details of other factors such as increased input usage like fertilizers and pesticides whose consumption is very low as compared to the global standards and are key areas that cannot be ignored.
The present seed industry is close to Rs. 11,000 crores and is growing at the brisk rate of 15-20% YOY. This brings in a great promise and a sense of optimism, keeping in mind the challenges of 2050. But, considering the growth rate of population, there has to be a greater impetus on hybridization and GM crop adoption.
The reason for my insistence on GM crops is because of the classical case of cotton, which saw a 100% adoption of BT technology in less than a decade’s time. This is phenomenal, given the awareness and literacy levels of our farming community. BT-cotton has not only increased the yields but has also reduced the cost of production and has left more money in the farmer’s pocket than before. By applying the thought that the customer buys only if he sees value, has resulted in the BT-cotton becoming a success story.
Talking about hybrids, they occupy about 20 per cent share in the total seed market, of which cotton has the biggest share, followed by rice (15 per cent), and wheat and vegetables (over 10 per cent each). This is a great opportunity for the seed industry to utilize and grow in open spaces by increasing awareness levels and communicating the benefits of hybrids to the Indian farmer.
A thorough planning and consolidation of effort from all stake holders – public, private, policy makers, and most importantly the farmers, would be required in addressing the challenges of 2050.
Given all the constraints, it leaves a great responsibility and puts an immense pressure on the Indian agricultural system to produce more from the existing or rapidly disappearing resources. Let us look at certain possibilities whereby the production of agricultural products could be increased in order to address the challenges of 2050.
Reducing the post-harvest wastage which accounts to almost 30% in case of perishables:
Generally, about 30% of fruits and vegetables are rendered unfit for consumption due to spoilage after harvesting. India annually produces fruits and vegetables to the value of about Rs. 7000 crores and wastage may be in the order of about Rs. 2100 crores. This is a huge loss of valuable food, and therefore, it is important not only to grow more, but also to save what is being grown at high cost. Focus on the supply chain and logistics is the need of the day which would come with increased investments. A strong infrastructure needs to be developed in order to reduce the wastage %age and see to it that more food reaches the table from the farm.
High yielding and disease-resistant hybrids – GM crops – a way forward:
More focus on hybridization and increasing awareness among farmers and stakeholders on the use of high yielding hybrids would plug the demand-supply gap in the future. Embracing biotechnology and use of GM crops would put us on the road forward as GM crops would allow us to reduce the economic cost by a huge margin which would result in increased yields. However, a great effort would be required by both the private individuals and the scientific community in convincing the people of the advantages of GM crops.
Since, the motive of writing this article was to highlight the future scope of the seed industry, I wouldn’t like go into the details of other factors such as increased input usage like fertilizers and pesticides whose consumption is very low as compared to the global standards and are key areas that cannot be ignored.
The present seed industry is close to Rs. 11,000 crores and is growing at the brisk rate of 15-20% YOY. This brings in a great promise and a sense of optimism, keeping in mind the challenges of 2050. But, considering the growth rate of population, there has to be a greater impetus on hybridization and GM crop adoption.
The reason for my insistence on GM crops is because of the classical case of cotton, which saw a 100% adoption of BT technology in less than a decade’s time. This is phenomenal, given the awareness and literacy levels of our farming community. BT-cotton has not only increased the yields but has also reduced the cost of production and has left more money in the farmer’s pocket than before. By applying the thought that the customer buys only if he sees value, has resulted in the BT-cotton becoming a success story.
Talking about hybrids, they occupy about 20 per cent share in the total seed market, of which cotton has the biggest share, followed by rice (15 per cent), and wheat and vegetables (over 10 per cent each). This is a great opportunity for the seed industry to utilize and grow in open spaces by increasing awareness levels and communicating the benefits of hybrids to the Indian farmer.
A thorough planning and consolidation of effort from all stake holders – public, private, policy makers, and most importantly the farmers, would be required in addressing the challenges of 2050.
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