As the global Agri- food systems face challenges to feed an ever-growing global population, resilient cereals like millets provide an affordable and nutrious option. The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring 2023 as the international year of millets. The resolution considers the urgent need to raise awareness of millet’s climate- resilient and nutritional benefits. Millets can play an important role in the livelihood of the masses and contribute to the collective efforts of empowering small land holding farmers, achieving sustainable development, eliminating hunger, adapting to climate change, promoting bio- diversity and transforming agri-food systems.
To ensure the good quality of raw material, big data comes into play. Helps in increasing the yield of the crop, optimal management strategies for getting the best crop and livestock production under a variety of environmental situations. Throughout the food supply chain from farm to fork, almost a third of the food for human consumption is lost or wasted. With the arrival of social media, the availability of consumer preferences likes and dislikes increased. Apps like Snapchat and Instagram acts as status projecting flatforms for people.
The waste streams from the food sector may be turned into value added functional ingredients, a significant benefit of employing biopolymers to manufacture packaging materials that decreases waste, promote sustainability and improve economic viability. Many of these biproducts are high in polysaccharides, proteins, lipids and other functional components such as antimicrobials, antioxidants and pigments serve as a good source of value-added ingredients.
The Argo economics development philosophy must evolve to allow for the coexistence of conventional and alternative agriculture, with the goal of equalising the opportunity. Mini scale processing and utilisation of food products through a short supply chain actually help the small producers balance their resilience over the competition from bulk producer.Balancing the demand and supply is the challenge
Prof. Vijaya Khader