Veterinary Agriculture: The Future of Food Production

As the global population continues to grow, the demand for sustainable and efficient food production has become increasingly critical. According to the World Bank Report (2013), post-harvest losses in India amount to 12 -16 million metric tonnes of food grains each year, an amount that the World Bank stipulates could feed one-third of India's poor. The Government of India procured 63 million tonnes of food grains for PDS of which 28 million tonnes of food grain are stored in the open space which has resulted in a loss of Rs. 60,000 crore (FCI 2015). Wastage of food due to a shortage in storage caused food damage. A study shows that about 1.06 lakh tonnes of wheat were damaged in Punjab and Haryana in the year 2012. This also caused bad quality of grain. On average, 30-40% of all food produced is lost or wasted resulting in losses for farmers and unnecessary pressures on natural resources (Godfray et al. 2010). Total food storage capacity in India is 336.04 including hired space whereas food production in the year 2011-12 was 667.89 lakh tonnes. Further due to lack of proper maintenance and skilled staff, 3.12 lakh tonnes of storage capacity were lying unutilized.