Indian Express

Is food inflation in India influenced by global price movements? On the face of it, that seems to be the case.

The return of food inflation

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO’s) food price index — which is a measure of the change in international prices of a basket of major food commodities with reference to a base period (2002-04 = 100) — touched 182.5 points in January 2020, the highest since the 185.8 level of December 2014.

Times Of India

Highlighting concerns of the farming community over the draft of the Seed Bill, 2019, which prevents farmers from producing seeds and threaten seed sovereignty of the agriculture community apart from attempts to impose industrial seed from MNCs through a UPOV (International Union for the Protection of Plant Varieties) like structure, Bharatiya Kisan Sangam has raised apprehensions that the the bill may not protect farmers’ right to save and exchange seeds freely among the farming community and also increase input costs.

Times Of India

The city witnessed a first-of-its-kind fair, where organic vegetable growers showcased their produce. The first Organic fair was held at the Press Club of Odisha with an aim to provide organic vegetables to people and promote such heathy vegetables. There were around 25 stalls set up inside the campus with organic produce.

Indian Express

With a bumper wheat output expected, the total foodgrains production in the country is estimated to reach an all-time high of 291.95 million tonnes during 2019-20, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare (MoAFW) on Tuesday.

The estimated foodgrains production during 2019-20 will be 0.29 per cent higher than the current year’s target of 291.10 million tonnes and 2.36 per cent higher than the production of 285.21 million tonnes in 2018-19.

Times Of India

Growers of Hemmady’s famed sevanthige are demanding compensation from the government as a short winter this year delayed yield and now that the flowers are ready for plucking, demand has dipped. The horticulture department, however, says it is helpless: compensation can be given only if there is crop damage or loss. The village of Hemmady, in Kundapur taluk, is known for its distinctive yellow chrysanthemum, deep yellow and fragrant and grown traditionally without use of chemicals. But while the Mattu Gulla (green brinjal) from Mattu Katpady has been patented, Hemmady’s sevanthige remains unmarked.

The Hindu BusinessLine

The International Year of Soils was celebrated in 2015, the same year that India’s unique programme of Soil Health Card was launched on February 19 to assess the nutrient status of every farm-holding in the country — a staggering figure of 14 crore. Coincidentally the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were also unveiled in 2015.

Agriculture, with soil and water at the heart of it, sustains life on Earth. It is estimated that the hunter-gatherer way of life evolved to farming about 12,000 years back, in the Fertile Crescent of the Middle East. DNA studies have shown that these pioneers moved eastwards, having striking resemblance to South Asians. Our ancestors practised natural farming in harmony with Nature. ...

Economic Times

Shifting cultivation, an age-old practice in parts of India, may soon get legal backing, with the government planning to define land use that will enable such cultivators access credit and agriculture-related benefits including subsidies.

India has nearly 1.73 million hectares under shifting cultivation, where plots of land are cultivated temporarily and then abandoned for years so that the land becomes fertile again. An estimated 6.23 lakh families are involved in this activity, 90% of which is in the Northeast based on 2003 data.

Economic Times

Canada is now gearing up to widen its export basket of commodities including canola oil, which it will position as premium healthy oil, wheat and barley after the country lost India as the as biggest consumer of Canada’s yellow peas and The Saskatchewan province of Canada will set up one of its global trade offices in India. The other two are in Japan and Singapore.

The Print

The onion crisis that hit India last year may have eased now, but it has once again put the spotlight on poor planning and inadequate crisis management by the government.

Onion prices had skyrocketed beyond Rs 150 per kg, hitting highs of Rs 160-180 in the winter of 2019, before stabilising again. But the market is still reeling under the impact of the crisis — a testament to the government’s shortcomings in handling it.

Hindustan Times

India is expected to produce a record 106.21 million tonnes of wheat this year, the farm ministry said, as favourable weather conditions helped to improve crop yields, with output far exceeding demand and further boosting stocks at grain bins.

Wheat output in India, the world’s second-biggest producer, is expected to go up by 2.5% in the crop year to June 2020, the farm ministry said in its second crop forecast for 2019/20.

Economic Times

As per Second Advance Estimates for 2019-20, total foodgrain production in the country is estimated at record 291.95 million tonnes which is higher by 6.74 million tonnes than the production of foodgrain of 285.21 million tonnes achieved during 2018-19. However, the production during 2019-20 is higher by 26.20 million tonnes than the previous five years’ (2013-14 to 2017-18) average production of foodgrain, a release issued by the government said.