Sugarcane growers in Karnataka and India are overly pampered with too much subsidy, Raghu, Food Scientist, Pristine Organics Private Limited said on Tuesday.

He said that 35 million tonnes of sugar is produced in India. Increased sugar consumption makes nutrition less dense. Sugar is a junk food, as it has only sucrose and no fibre or protein.

India is gradually becoming home to the highest number of diabetics. Interestingly, the consumption of more than 5% of sugar daily is the prime cause of diabetes. 

Speaking at the World Food Day- 2018, organised by the Institution of Agricultural Technologists (IAT) and Agriculture Department in the city, Raghu said that in India 8 lakh children do not survive till their first birthday, annually, due to malnutrition. The theme for this year is “A #ZeroHunger World by 2030”. Stunting is the new disorder among Indian children. The weight does not match their height. The per capita income, nutrition, and calorie consumption does not match in Indians.

“India is the highest rice exporter with 16 million tonnes. We even beat Thailand. But we are short in protein and fat consumption, which is only at 60%. While it is 90% in China and 100% in other developed countries. Ironically we export 70,000 tonnes of oil, this is despite 8,000 farmers producing oilseeds. We also import 6,500 million tonnes of millets. However, most of the domestic production is stored in godowns,” he pointed.

Also present on the occasion, G Eswarppa, Vice President, IAT said that there is a major drop in youth pursuing agriculture. “If we go to villages, we can see senior citizens and women indulging in agriculture. There is a drop in agriculturists from 60% to 40%. Youth are not keen because there is less money and more hardships. The government is working towards drawing more youth,” he said.