Demand vs supply of food in India - Futuristic projection

Abstract

Achieving food self-sufficiency has always been the primary objective of agricultural policy in India. Driven by rising population, growing economy, increasing urbanization and changing tastes and preferences, the demand for food is continuously growing in the country. This study has attempted to answer questions like will India be able to produce enough to meet its growing food demand or will it open for imports of food commodities over the next two decades (2010- 2030)? What would be the likely trends for future demand of various food commodities? Will the supply of key food commodities continue to keep pace with their demand? These are the questions, which need to be answered to evolve appropriate strategy and meet the future demand of food commodities in India. This study is an attempt to project demand for and supply of key food commodities by 2020 and 2030, and assesses their demand-supply gap. Such information will be useful to evolve appropriate medium- and long-term strategies in the food sector.