Food Distribution Value Chains under the Integrated Child Development Services

Globally, social provisioning of food is recognised as an important means to reduce the prevalence of malnutrition. Government food distribution programmes have potential for impact at scale in this context. This article examines the food distribution value chain of the Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP) under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme of the Government of India, targeted at pregnant and lactating women and children below six years of age. Following the conceptual framework outlined in Maestre, Poole, and Henson (2017), the article examines two different models in operation under the SNP value chain in two states of India: Telangana, where a state enterprise is engaged in the manufacture of fortified premix for distribution, and Tamil Nadu, which follows a public–private partnership (PPP) model. The article highlights the challenges and opportunities associated with the two models and attempts to provide insights for designing better delivery under public food distribution value chains.Department for International Development (DFID

Effectiveness of the Value Chain of an Agri-Food Product in Reaching Low Income Consumers: A Business Case Study of Amulspray

A large section of the population in South Asia is undernourished. Agriculture is the main source of livelihood in the region. Following the framework detailed in Henson and Humphrey (2015), this paper attempts to assess the effectiveness of a dairy milk product (Amulspray), manufactured by a cooperative business, in enhancing consumption of nutritious food by the poor. The case study examines the value chain of Amulspray with focus on the commercial viability of the product and its market outreach, particularly to children from low income households. The study finds that though the value chain has potential, there are limitations for business-driven value chains to reach vulnerable sections. Institutional environments can play important roles in enabling business-driven value chains to have a pro-nutrition and pro-poor focus.UKAIDDFI

Private Business-Driven Value Chains and Nutrition: Insights from India

Despite rapid economic growth, undernutrition rates in South Asia remain among the highest in the world. It is also seen that both rural and urban populations in developing countries are increasingly dependent on markets for food. This makes examining the potential of different agri‑food models to deliver nutritious foods relevant. This article examines the value chains of two fortified foods manufactured by private sector business in India using the conceptual framework in Maestre, Poole and Henson (2017), to understand their potential to reach economically poor households. We find that both value chains have potential but are unsuccessful in reaching nutritionally vulnerable populations. In both cases, a favourable institutional environment can enable them to have a pro‑nutrition and pro-poor focus. A proactive state role and regulation are called for to provide the necessary institutional environment to ensure that private business-led value chains focus on enhanced intake of nutritious food by low-income households.Department for International Development (DFID

Agriculture, nutrition and gender in India

The South Asian region has one of the highest rates of child and maternal undernutrition in the world. Undernutrition is widespread and persistent even in India despite its relatively strong economic performance and is particularly high in rural areas and among those in agriculture based livelihoods. Though agriculture has the enormous potential to contribute to improvements in undernutrition, the evidence so far in the Indian context demonstrates weak linkages between agriculture and nutrition . This research brief summarises the key findings from the different studies focusing on women’s agency and nutrition undertaken by LANSA in India.Department for International Development (DFID)UKAI

Agriculture-nutrition linkages and child undernutrition in India

The South Asian region and in particular India, has one of the highest rates of child undernutrition in the world, and is home to around 40 per cent of the global total of children who are stunted. Child stunting has been shown to have severe lifelong economic, health, and cognitive disadvantages and costs. Despite improvements in some states in recent years, the levels continue to be high. Understanding the reasons for the high prevalence of child undernutrition in India in the face of the relatively strong economic performance has emerged as an important research topic and is an area of focus of LANSA’s research in the region. Under the research theme, ‘How enabling is the wider context in linking agriculture and food systems to other determinants of nutritional status?’, LANSA research in India focuses on understanding the barriers and facilitators to nutrition-sensitive agricultural development in the country. The analyses and empirical work on the available large secondary datasets from India are expected to elaborate on the pathways that connect agriculture and nutrition and the type and degree of interaction with other non-food drivers. This research brief summarises the key findings from some of the studies undertaken by LANSA partners, on agriculture-nutrition linkages and child undernutrition in India.Department for International Development (DFID)UKAI

Can Business-driven Fortified Foods Reach Nutritionally Vulnerable Households? A Case Study of Tiger Biscuits

Fortification of food has been an effective way to address micronutrient deficiency. This paper presents a case study of iron-fortified Tiger brand biscuits of Britannia Industries Limited (BIL). The study uses a conceptual framework developed under LANSA research to analyse the value chain of iron-fortified Tiger biscuits and examines the potential that the value chain has to reach economically-poor households. It is seen that the fortification initiative in the value chain has not been sustainable. Absence of both pro-nutrition focus in the larger corporate business strategy and thrust from the larger business environment may be seen as the reasons for this. Given the increasing dependence on markets for food, a mandatory regulation on fortification of biscuits could perhaps have ensured the continuation of the iron-fortified biscuit line. Governments can play an important role in creating a favourable environment for businesses to have a pro-nutrition focus.UKAIDDFI

Importance of WASH and Healthcare for enabling Agriculture-Nutrition linkages in India

State and district level studies linking child undernutrition to agricultural prosperity and provisioning of public services highlight the importance of public health provisioning such as sanitation, vaccination and healthcare facilities in rural areas, public provisioning for maternal health and women’s education as well as social provisioning of food. This policy brief discusses the following focus polices and programmes: National Health Mission; Swachh Bharat Abhiyan 2014; Draft National Policy for Women 2016; Draft National Plan of Action for Children 2016; National Food Security Act 2013; National Policy for Empowerment of Women 2001.Department for International Development (DFID)UKAI

Agriculture and Child Under-Nutrition in India: A State Level Analysis

The literature review on agriculture-child nutrition linkage indicates that the evidence base is weak and inconclusive (Kadiyala et al., 2013). This paper explores the possible linkages between agricultural prosperity with rural child nutrition at the macro level, controlling for sanitation and safe drinking water, using panel data fixed effects and random effects models. The four alternate indicators of agricultural prosperity viz., agricultural growth, worker productivity, land productivity and food grain productionper capita used alternatively enable us to conclude that negative influence of agricultural prosperity on child undernutrition exists, though the influence of various aspects of prosperity on underweight and stunting differ. Other aspects of agriculture considered, such as female agricultural wages help to reinforce the negative influence of agricultural prosperity on underweight in children and the land operational inequality dampens the impact of agricultural prosperity as it increases the incidence of stunting. Water and sanitation help reduce child undernutrition albeit differently on stunting and underweight. The same set of variables seems to influence stunting and underweight differently. Their trajectories seem to differ. The present study enables us to conclude that Indian agricultural growth through higher food grain production and through higher land productivity, when percolates through, labour productivity and higher wages, can reduce child undernutrition in rural India. However, public policy has to promote social provisioning of sanitation and health and make sure that agricultural growth is consistent. Public policy should ensure that growth translates into higher labour productivity and higher wages.UK AidDepartment for International Development (DFID

Women in Agriculture and Nutrition in India

Policy debates around agriculture and nutrition and the crucial role of women needs to be informed by evidence that research programmes like LANSA generate. The available evidence recommends the recognition of women’s roles in agriculture and nutrition. This Policy Brief looks at the following focus polices and programmes: Draft National Policy for Women 2016; National Policy for Empowerment of Women 2001; Supplementary Nutrition Programme under ICDS; National Nutrition Policy 1993; National Food Security Act 2013; National Policy for Farmers 2007.Department for International Development (DFID)UKAI

Child underweight, land productivity and public services: a district-level analysis for India

Though India’s rank has improved in the Global Hunger Index, contributed largely by the fall in the underweight rates for children, concerns of high level of undernutrition in predominantly agricultural pockets remain. This study aims at linking child underweight rates to agricultural land productivity, a proxy for agricultural prosperity, and to the provisioning of public services, using district-level data. The study estimates a three-stage least squares (3SLS) model with a log-linear specification. Unlike many earlier studies, the results indicate a possible positive relationship between agricultural land productivity and child underweight rates. It appears that the district-level analysis is able to capture aspects of agro-climatic conditions, agricultural development and its spillover effects, and public services delivery more effectively when compared to several studies based on household-level survey data. The results clearly show the importance of public health provisioning in terms of vaccination, administration of oral rehydration salts when there is incidence of diarrhoea, government health facilities in rural areas, public provisioning of food, as also maternal health and women’s education. Though their elasticity was small, the variables were significant and it is clear that they may have a bigger impact on the deprived sections of the population. For example, a 1 per cent increase in land productivity increases the percentage of nourished children below six years by about .08 per cent. Similarly, use of oral rehydration salts in diarrhoea incidence improves the underweight rate by about 0.08 per cent at the overall district level. In the parts of the country where underweight rates are high, the impact will be more and the overall magnitude of reduction would be high even if the elasticity is low. The study also shows, in an indirect way, the need for a convergence of agricultural development efforts that create on-farm and off-farm employment with public service delivery of health, sanitation and food. The policy implication is that the state governments should strive to achieve administrative convergence of both agricultural development and public provisioning, paying special attention to safe water supply.UK AidDepartment for International Development (DFID