Next, focus on nutritional security, says NDRI director

Director of ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal in Haryana, A K Srivastava has said that the country had almost achieved food security and now it was time to focus on nutritional security for the people of India.

He was delivering the Foundation Day speech at the CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) in Mysuru on Wednesday.

“While plant derivatives can be consumed raw, food products from animals have to be cooked or processed. In the process, their natural nutrition has to be fortified. For some food items, required nutrition has to be added. Even after fortification, if people do not know the right way to consume it, the efforts are wasted. In case of iodised salt, it has to be consumed raw for desired benefits. If salt is added to a boiling recipe, its iodine content gets evaporated when the lid is open. If salt is added to a recipe, the lid should be kept closed for at least five minutes for settling,” he said.

“As we have achieved food security, our focus should be to develop complete food now,” he added.

“India is expected to keep feeding its ever increasing population. The food situation has changed drastically from starvation, self-sufficiency and surplus since Independence. Our nation stands out, as we have been able to feed 17 per cent of the world’s population with just 2.3 per cent of cultivable land and 4.3 per cent potable water,” he said.

Focussing on exports, Srivastava said, “With just 1.9 per cent out of the total production of milk in the world, New Zealand has captured 37 per cent of the total exports market, but with 17 per cent of the total production, India has hardly one per cent share in the exports’ market.” He attributed this to marketing of milk by the unorganised sector in India.

“Actually, white revolution has far surpassed the green revolution in India. With a total production of 140 million tonne of milk, we are the toppers in the world, despite reduction of land under fodder cultivation from 10 per cent when we got Independence, to just 4.7 per cent land now,” he said.

He released a few technologies developed by the scientists of the CFTRI on the occasion and also presented awards to achievers in various fields during the year.

Director of the CFTRI Ram Rajasekharan, Administrative Officer Mallika P Kumar, K Srinivasan, Kalpana Platel, K Srinivasan and G A Krishna were present.