Food Security

Farm growth post-2015 more broad-based, technology-driven: Report

Growth averaged 4.5% post 2015 compared to 3 per cent between 1967-1995 and 1996-2014

War, extreme weather put Asia's food security at risk: Verisk Maplecroft

Fuel and fertiliser disruptions from the Iran war, alongside El Niño-linked weather extremes, are threatening crops and could worsen food inflation across vulnerable Asian economies

From Maggi to Thums Up: How India became dependent on cheap packaged food

In a setback to the industry, the FSSAI said it could introduce tougher red warning labels on food that exceeds government-set limits ‌on added sugar, salt or saturated fat in one go

From food shortages to record harvests: How India learnt to feed itself

India is celebrating its 80th Independence Day on Saturday. Eight decades after Independence, one measure of the country's economic transformation can be seen in its ability to produce food.

States can add 22.7 million more beneficiaries under Food Act: Centre

The Centre tells Parliament that states and Union Territories have identified 790.8 million beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act against the intended coverage of 813.5 million people

Reorienting PDS: It's time to move from food security to nutrition security

India was the first country in the world to enact a legal right to food through the NFSA in 2013

Best of BS Opinion: Systems earn trust by holding up when tested

From US tariffs and exam reforms to welfare, governance and democracy, today's editorials examine how institutions earn public trust by adapting under pressure

Best of BS Opinion: Beyond headlines and between the lines

From IPOs and exports to AI, nutrition and politics, the deeper story lies not in headline numbers but in the strength of underlying structures

Mission SEHAT aims to align agriculture and health for nutritional security

This initiative, notably, has come amid the growing apprehension that modern high-yielding crop varieties are, in general, less nourishing than their older versions

Millions are being pushed into hunger by Iran war, says UN food agency

The UN food agency said millions of people are being pushed into acute hunger by the Iran war, as it warned would happen if the conflict escalated and oil prices remained high. The World Food Program said an analysis in three vulnerable countries found that an additional 2.5 million people in Somalia, 2.3 million in Afghanistan and 1.3 million in Sri Lanka are struggling to meet their basic food needs. In March, WFP predicted that 45 million people could be pushed into food insecurity by the end of June. That would be on top of the 318 million people around the world who are already food insecure. "We remain by that prognosis," WFP's acting Executive Director Carl Skau told UN reporters. "That's mainly because the correlation between the prices of energy and food is so tight in many places, and also that in the poorest countries people are already spending all their money on food, and hence when food prices rise, they eat less." WFP said in its report, circulated late Thursday, tha

IRCTC turns to AI-powered monitoring to improve train food hygiene

The AI setup is part of the newly established War Room at IRCTC's Delhi headquarters, and is aimed at fostering predictive interventions, according to Chairman and Managing Director Sanjay Kumar Jain

PM Modi receives prestigious FAO Agricola Medal for food security efforts

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Wednesday conferred with the prestigious FAO Agricola Medal by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations in recognition of his contribution to food security, sustainable agriculture and rural development. Modi, who arrived in Italy on Tuesday night on the concluding leg of his five-nation tour, received the award from Dr Qu Dongyu, Director-General of FAO at the UN body's headquarters in Rome. Modi said that the honour reflects India's unwavering commitment to food security, sustainable development and the hard work of those associated with the agriculture sector. "This is an honour to India's millions of farmers, livestock rearers, fish farmers, agricultural scientists, and workers. This is also an honour to India's unwavering commitment, at the centre of which lies human welfare, food security, and Sustainable Development," he said. The FAO Agricola Medal is one of the highest honours awarded by the FAO to distinguished ...

Iran turns to Caspian Sea to secure food supplies amid US naval blockade

With the United States trying to squeeze Iran by blockading goods from entering or exiting its ports, food suppliers are rerouting imports via the Caspian Sea to ensure food keeps getting into the country. The head of the Association of Iran's Food Industries said Monday that alternative import routes are being "incorporated into the supply chain for essential goods". "At present, there is no problem with the country's food security, but maintaining this situation requires careful planning," Mohammad Reza Mortazavi said, according to the state-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting. The Caspian is the world's largest inland body of water and its southern coastline stretches more than 430 miles (700 km) in northern Iran. Iran is a net importer of food staples like grain and cooking oil.

No plans to impose curbs on sugar exports: Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra

India is the world's second biggest sugar producer

India's food systems need a reset for Viksit Bharat, rethink policy focus

The issue is no longer food availability; it is the absence of a coherent food systems approach

Odisha expands food net with Annapurna Yojana, to spend ₹8,813 crore

State to provide 5 kg additional rice per person monthly under new scheme, covering over 3.28 crore beneficiaries and significantly expanding food security coverage

Fuel shortages caused by Iran war begin to threaten global food supply

Farmers worldwide face fuel shortages that threaten diesel-powered planting, irrigation and fishing, as energy supply shocks from the Iran war risk pushing up food costs and global inflation

States scramble to send full SNAP food benefits after shutdown ends

With the longest US government shutdown over, state officials said Thursday that they are working quickly to get full SNAP food benefits to millions of people, though it still could take up to a week for some to receive their delayed aid. A back-and-forth series of court rulings and shifting policies from President Donald Trump's administration has led to a patchwork distribution of November benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. While some states already had issued full SNAP benefits, about two-thirds of states had issued only partial benefits or none at all before the government shutdown ended late Wednesday, according to an Associated Press tally. The federal food programme serves about 42 million people, about 1 in 8 Americans, in lower-income households. They receive an average of around $190 monthly per person, though that doesn't necessarily cover the full cost of groceries for a regular month. A spokesperson for the US Department of Agriculture, which

FY27 Budget may increase food subsidy by 7-8% to nearly ₹2.2 trillion

The Centre may raise FY27 food subsidy by around 7% to around ₹2.17 trillion as grain procurement and welfare distribution costs rise under the PMGKAY free foodgrain scheme

The silent enemy redefines security for a world beyond the battlefield

A timely book by Arvind Gupta and Rajesh Singh expands the idea of national security beyond the military to include climate, technology, and economic vulnerabilities