Open AccessStrengthening agriculture-nutrition linkages to improve consumption of nutrient-dense perishable foods in India - existing evidence and way forward
Author(s) -
K. N. Selvaraj,
Ankita Mondal,
Bharati Kulkarni
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of food, nutrition and agriculture
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2616-6550
DOI - 10.21839/jfna.2021.v4.7201
Subject(s) - agriculture , malnutrition , consumption (sociology) , business , nutrient , psychological intervention , volatility (finance) , agricultural economics , environmental health , economics , economic growth , medicine , geography , biology , ecology , social science , archaeology , finance , psychiatry , sociology
The triple burden of malnutrition in India is largely contributed by poor quality diets lacking adequate intake of nutrient dense perishable foods (NDPFs) - milk, eggs, fruits and vegetables. This is intriguing because India is one of the largest producers of NDPFs. This review examines possible reasons for this disparity. Poor post-harvest infrastructure, price volatility, unorganized supply chains, long-standing government policies favouring cereals and increasing consumer preference of convenience foods are identified as major reasons for the low intake of NDPFs. While nutrition-sensitive agriculture interventions appear promising to improve intakes of NDPF, stronger evidence is needed to scale up these interventions.