Indian agriculture enters new phase as diets, incomes and climate reshape farming: Report
The first phase, from roughly 1967 to 1995, was dominated by the need to achieve food security, says the paper.
Indian agriculture is undergoing a significant transformation driven by changing diets, rising incomes, climate risks, and pressure on natural resources. The focus is shifting from merely producing more foodgrains to creating greater value, diversifying production, and utilizing land and water more efficiently. A recent report in The Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences identifies three broad phases in India's agrifood system since the Green Revolution.
The first phase, from 1967 to 1995, was dominated by the need to achieve food security, with high-yielding varieties of rice and wheat, expansion of irrigation, and increased use of fertilizers transforming Indian agriculture. However, this period also led to environmental pressures such as groundwater depletion, declining soil fertility, biodiversity loss, and pollution due to the intensive use of inputs.
As food scarcity became less dominant, Indian consumption patterns began to change, with rising incomes, urbanisation, economic reforms, and changing dietary preferences increasing demand for fruits, vegetables, milk, meat, eggs, and fish. Agricultural growth is becoming more diversified, with the agricultural GVA growth averaging 4.51% during 2015-2025, compared to 2.71% during 1967-1995 and 2.98% during 1996-2014.
High-value sectors such as horticulture, dairy, fisheries, and poultry are driving growth, with significant increases in milk production, fisheries, and poultry production.
Brief written by urgent.news from The Economic Times - Economy's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
