Introduction
As urban populations grow, ensuring adequate food for city dwellers becomes a significant challenge. Urbanization increases the demand for food, employment, goods, and services, making it crucial to develop strategies that guarantee food security, nutrition, and livelihoods (Gupta & Gangopadhyay, 2013). India faces serious constraints like diminishing agricultural land, water, and forests, which could lead to unsustainable urban growth and increased food insecurity (Gupta & Gangopadhyay, 2013).
Policy and Governance
India's urban planning is capital-intensive, unlike the cost-effective, citizen-focused approaches seen in Curitiba and Cuba. Adopting such sustainable methods could help address food security issues (Gupta & Gangopadhyay, 2013). For example, incorporating evicted agricultural workers into urban fringe jobs like waste recycling and urban agriculture, as done in Curitiba, can transform organic waste into food and greenery. This benefits local communities by providing jobs and food and improves overall urban sustainability (Gupta & Gangopadhyay, 2013).
India must shift from a "throw-away" society to one that converts waste into resources, recovering wasteland and garbage dumps for agriculture. Urban planning in India should integrate federal, state, and municipal efforts, involving citizens in decision-making(Gupta & Gangopadhyay, 2013). Policies must be crafted collaboratively by politicians, urban planners, and agricultural experts, ensuring synergy between public policy, innovative planning, and sustainable agricultural techniques (Gupta & Gangopadhyay, 2013).
Every city needs a unique vision with holistic, comprehensive, and long-term urban planning (Gupta & Gangopadhyay, 2013). The following figure (Fig. 1) depicts the priorities of Indian policymakers over five decades.
Fig. 1 Indian policy priorities over time (Pingali, Aiyar, Abraham, & Rahman, 2019).
Furthermore, the table below (Table. 1) showcases various schemes launched by concerned Ministries, departments and agencies, highlighting their key components.
Table. 1 Ministries, departments and agencies highlighting their key components, 2005-2014 (Agarwal et al., 2021).
The Union Government has recently passed three bills to transform agricultural marketing, sales, and storage across India. However, the impact of these bills on reducing food losses remains uncertain (Agarwal et al., 2021). To enhance the effectiveness of government interventions in minimizing food loss, several critical gaps must be addressed:
- Uneven Policy Focus Across Supply Chains: Current policies emphasize storage solutions, often neglecting the crucial link between storage and consumption points (Agarwal et al., 2021).
- Lack of a Farm-to-Fork Approach: Integrating the entire supply chain from production to consumption is essential for an efficient and sustainable food supply. This integration can improve farm productivity, minimize food loss, and ensure nutritional security (Agarwal et al., 2021).
- Paucity of Data-Driven Policies: Effective interventions require accurate data on critical loss points within the supply chain. Presently, there's an uneven focus on single-commodity cold storage facilities, lacking a comprehensive strategy that connects storage with market distribution (Agarwal et al., 2021). This fragmented approach is partly due to insufficient data on geographical and crop-specific loss hotspots and the siloed functioning of various departments and schemes (Agarwal et al., 2021).
- Inadequate Policy Analysis: There is a need for a thorough analysis of existing schemes, interventions, and incentives by the Union Government and states. This includes mapping schemes to their intended stakeholders and assessing their impact on smallholder farmers, women, and other vulnerable communities (Agarwal et al., 2021).
Technological Innovations
Technological advancements play a critical role in reducing food waste. Improved waste management systems, biogas production from food waste, and efficient storage and distribution networks can minimize waste. Adopting digital platforms for food redistribution and using data analytics to optimize supply chains are also crucial innovations (Sahoo et al., 2024).
To mitigate food waste, several emerging technologies and innovations can be adopted. Here are some key areas of focus:
- Agricultural Technology for Small Holders: Technologies that increase productivity and sustainability are vital. The Green Revolution boosted yields, reduced poverty, and lowered food prices, but also had environmental downsides and limited scope (Pingali, Aiyar, Abraham, & Rahman, 2019). Future technologies must enhance productivity while being environmentally friendly and applicable to various crops and regions (Pingali, Aiyar, Abraham, & Rahman, 2019).
- Sustainable Intensification: This approach aims to increase agricultural outputs without additional land use, using resources like water and fertilizers more efficiently, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions and soil degradation (Pingali, Aiyar, Abraham, & Rahman, 2019).
- Green Vehicles from Food Waste: Food waste can be converted into green energy for vehicles. Studies show biohydrogen, derived from food waste, is a promising fuel for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Other technologies include converting food waste into biomethane and bioethanol for conventional cars, and bioelectricity for electric vehicles (Sahoo et al., 2024).
- Food Waste Adsorbents: Food waste can also be used in environmental remediation. For instance, food waste-derived pectin and spherical cellulose nanocrystals (SCNCs) can remove hazardous dyes from wastewater and have applications in various industries (Sahoo et al., 2024).
- Community Fridges and Food Banks: Cities like Chennai, Kochi, and Mumbai use communal fridges to reduce food waste and feed the needy. Retailers can also donate surplus food or compost inedible items to create biofuel (Sahoo et al., 2024).
- Biogas and Bio-Slurry Production: The CHUGG system processes food waste into biogas for cooking and bio-slurry for use as fertilizer. This system is sustainable and complies with solid waste management regulations, providing economic benefits and reducing food waste (Sinha & Tripathi, 2021).
- Nanomaterials from Food Waste: Sustainable nanomaterials like cellulose from jackfruit peels can be used in various industries, including food, paper, optics, and pharmaceuticals. Similarly, silver nanoparticles synthesized from spent hop extracts have antibacterial and anticancer properties (Sinha & Tripathi, 2021).
Conclusion
A multifaceted approach involving policy reforms, technological innovations, and community engagement is essential to address food waste in urban India. By learning from successful international examples and integrating sustainable practices, India can significantly reduce food waste, improve food security, and promote urban sustainability.
References
- Agarwal, M., Agarwal, S., Ahmad, S., Singh, R., & Jayahari, K. M. (2021). Food loss and waste in India: The knowns and the unknowns. World Resources Institute, 10.
- Gupta, R., & Gangopadhyay, S. G. (2013). Urban food security through urban agriculture and waste recycling: Some lessons for India. Vikalpa, 38(3), 13-22.
- Pingali, P., Aiyar, A., Abraham, M., & Rahman, A. (2019). Transforming food systems for a rising India (p. 368). Springer Nature.
- Sahoo, A., Dwivedi, A., Madheshiya, P., Kumar, U., Sharma, R. K., & Tiwari, S. (2024). Insights into the management of food waste in developing countries: with special reference to India. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 31(12), 17887-17913.
- Sinha, S., & Tripathi, P. (2021). Trends and challenges in valorisation of food waste in developing economies: A case study of India. Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering, 4, 100162.
Further reading
Economic Impact of Food Waste in Urban India