Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum)

Can you share examples on how the bottlenecks listed in the policy brief have been addressed and with which result?

To handle the bottlenecks, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) issued state specific guidelines about harvesting and threshing of rabi (Summer season) crops along with the advisories on handling post-harvest operations like storage and marketing of the farm produce more efficiently. Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), the outreach arms of ICAR, tapped full potential of different Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools to address farm challenges during the lockdown and supported farmers and farm women. The Division of Agricultural Extension, ICAR, has documented & published selected successful interventions by the KVKs & innovative practices being followed by farmers nationwide, which proved quite helpful to the farmers in combating the adverse effects of COVID-19 lockdown. The compilation entitled “Innovative Agri - solutions during COVID-19” in the form of an e-book could be useful to motivate many others to think creative workable solutions to the problems arising due to Covid-19 like situations.This e-book includes more than 100 selected experiences from every part of India. 

https://www.icar.org.in/sites/default/files/Innovative_Agri-Solutions_C…

Thanks

Mahesh Chander

The whole country of Bolivia was under quarantine from late March up to the end of May. Currently most of the country continues in such condition. The city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra is the one most  affected by the pandemics and, therefore, its population is suffering major constraints to have acces to food in terms of quantity and quality, specially the poor ones. By middle May local authorities allowed  food suppliers to have easier access to markets in certain areas as to have better health control of people, markets and products.

Santa Cruz is also the main supplier of meat for the country. A severe reduction of the demand by the closure of restaurants and the marketing constraints established by health authorities affected very much the production activities but, in a bigger degree, its processing and marketing. Authorizations to move cattle have to be obtained from local officers but managers can not move themselves either to their farms nor to the authorities offices because of the quarantine. Transporting trucks have the same impairements and auction centers , the same as other marketing places.

To overcome these limitations and facilite the operation of the beef meat chain the following solutions were adopted: (1) allow the free movement of cattle from farm to farm; (2) allow transporters and farm managers to request and obtain moving autorizations on line to take cattle out of the farms , to move them to the cities and to have acces to urban markets as well as to processing plants; (3) adopt a new auction metodology to sell and buy alive cattle in the major market of the city using media systems like facebook and whatsapp (In a week time the value of the transactionc recupered normal levels as they were before the pandemics). So far the chain is fully operational although the demand still remains constrained.

Jose Maguina, M. Sc., Instituto para el Desarrollo Rural de Sudamerica, IPDRS.

This crisis can be regarded as a sudden onset disaster for which a rapid response approach is necessary. The impact was immediate and widespread, but at the same time, the information on what policy instrumets would work the best in the current circumstances in order to mitigate the impacts was very limited. Having the strategic importance of the agriculture for the food security it was necessary for policymakers to be vigilant and timely undertake active measures to support the opertors in the sector to continue producing and distributing the goods in dramatically changed environment. The main challenge in the very moment was the administration to shift its normal organizational structure into a crisis management mode in order to become capable to cope with the health risks while supporting the sector. In my view the national and international organizations including FAO needed a lot of time for undertaking the initial actions althought the crisis appeared a few months before in China. It has been treated as a local incident with underestimated global impact.

I think that the main lessons is to prepare ourselves better for similar situation in the future which might be experienced even very soon as second COVID-19 wave, now with having ready contingency plans and protocols for optimal acting of the participants in the sector in given conditions. In addition, it has emphasizied the importance of the alternative marketing channels based on the modern technologies and short supply which can also improve the current unfortunate small-scale farmers' position in the overall distribution of value in the chain.  

Here is the link to my snap analysis made in the very beggining of the crisis about the impact of the outbreak to the Macedonian agriculture https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/analysis-impact-global-coronavirus-pande…

And the link of the article on crisis management toolkit of measures and instruments for policymakers to response on the consequences of the COVID19 in agriculture and food supply also prepared when there ws no similar documents publicaly avaliable

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340863064_Policy_response_for_mitigation_of_COVID-19_impact_on_agriculture_and_food_supply_-_a_crisis_management_toolkit_for_policymakers

The real impact assesment is more or less similar as the forecasted and shall be carried out in the comming period.  

Community Supported Agriculture is an important part of local sustainable food systems. Because there are basically just producers and consumers involved in the logistics, adaptation to Covid-19 has been universally authorised by public authorities. In many cases the adaptations have involved home deliveries, which is obviously more time consuming. In other cases it has involved drive by pick ups. Yet another solution has been time-phased and distanced pick ups from usual distribution points. Because it is prepaid no cash transactions are involved in the logistics, which also makes it safer and simpler.

There has been huge surge in interest of several hundred % in local vegetable box schemes and CSA, the logistics of production are significantly under stress, more than those of logistics. There are currently long waiting lists.

Are there any additional areas not yet included in the brief that warrant particular attention with regard to logistics affecting the food supply chain?  

The Covid-19 lockdown opened the oppoertunity for trying something new which could be new normal post covid. There could be some discussion on new initiatives which were thought  of and tried by different organizations. For instance, we started in a very limited way, a programme: HARVEST YOUR OWN VEGETABLES, wherein, we asked consumers to harvest their requirement  of vegetables from the farm ( https://www.aesanetwork.org/field-notes-10-harvest-your-vegetables-at-a… ). Likewise, there were several initiatives taken by communities and Farmer Producer Organizations which came to the rescue of farmers by channeling their farm produce to consumers. The government allowed farmers to sell their produce directly to consumers by amending the APMC act which was restrictive previously ( https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/states-to…). Some FPOs used apps for uninterpreted vegetable supply during lock down ( http://agrospectrumindia.com/news/26/607/fpo-uses-app-for-uninterpreted… ). Many ideas cropped up to ease of marketing of farm products ( https://thewire.in/agriculture/farmers-covid-19-lockdown-india-relief-m… ).

Thanks

Mahesh chander

How have logistics from the national to the local level been impacted by the pandemic and response measures?

1.When the wheat harvesting season was approaching in April, farmers faced problems of non availability of harvesters and labourers even though restrictions on farming operations were lifted by the government. In most of the Northern Indian states, farmers hire harvesters from Punjab, but initially there was relectance on the part of operators to lend harvesters, coupled with labour shaortages harvesting was delayed. With persuations, advisories and confidence building measures taken by government, harvesting could be done, minimizing th eloss to great extent.

2. Seeds, plant protectants, fertilizers all were exempted from restrictions but the stockists were reluctant in opening their shops/stores, which initially affected the farmers.

Enhancement of Food System Logistics in Response to Medical Emergencies

This contribution consists of three integral parts. The first outlines the purpose of the suggested enhancement and what that objective entails, and they represent the necessary conditions for achieving our objective. In the second part, we discuss the concrete steps needed and emphasise the importance of a rapid response. The contribution concludes with some notes on its implementation.

It will be obvious that the kind of enhanced logistics in a food system needed to cope with the food requirements of the public under any medical emergency such as the present Corona infection are identical in their characteristics. It is necessary to understand that what may differ in their nature is only the type of precautions the personnel who run the food system logistics ought to take. Since such measures are best prescribed by competent medical microbiologists, we need not take up that problem here.

Even if we should limit ourselves to food system logistics, we cannot overlook several logical facts we have to bear in mind:

• The purpose of enhanced food system logistics is to ensure the best possible food supply to end-users under a given medical emergency with the restrictions it entails.
• But the usefulness of undertaking such an enhancement depends on there being a sufficient quantity of food already available for distribution.
• Thus, useful enhancement of food system logistics and the availability of a sufficient quantity of food are logically inseparable as the two sides of a coin.

Therefore, we need a holistic, pragmatic approach here to ensure the best possible solution under the present circumstances. It is tempting to point out the obvious, viz., that such measures are difficult to undertake under a crisis, and we should have had them in place before such has arisen. However, this is of little use; so, let us see what the best we can do now. The first step we need is to determine how best we may ensure an adequate food supply to the public as soon as possible.

No government seem to have in place a food and agriculture policy segment to be activated under a medical emergency for rapid response. As a rapid response is essential, implementation of such a policy segment should be the responsibility of a central directing authority that may delegate the relevant logistic functions to a set of operators chosen for their efficiency, willingness and ability to undertake coordinated quick action.

These operators may include a variety of civilian and military operators who will act in unison under the direction of a central authority and/or its regional representatives. In situations like the present one, central government seem to be the most appropriate for the purpose. It and the operators it may chose should bear the following critical factors in mind:

• Quickness of response is of the essence.
• Therefore, no time should be lost on data collection and analysis, nor yet on research.
• For all practical purposes, information on the kind and quantity of needed food may be obtained from local food sellers, ware houses, wholesale merchants, consumer bodies, etc. As this is not an exercise in precision, such information would be a reliable enough target for logistical purposes.
• In addition to the existing storage facilities, it might be necessary to requisition extra space for food storage and deploy additional personnel to manage them. Such storage units ought to be restricted to dry foods and should be distributed to suitable outlets as fast as possible.
• In order to deal with inadequate infra-structure, extensive use of military transport is highly recommended.
• Coordinated military and civil transport should be used to carry fresh food items quickly to the targeted areas for rapid local distribution.
• Attempts to establish cold storage facilities in areas where none exists are deprecated, for such efforts are time consuming and may be of very limited real use.
• Central authorities may rapidly establish agreements with foreign suppliers/donors of food while the appropriate international organisations like the UN should do their best to provide timely financial help to expedite such procurement and its transport.
• Local authorities to whom the government has delegated the function should set up local stores of food and transport in order to distribute essential food items to the needy people of the area on subsidised prices or free of charge. This may already have become a vital necessity in large cities with slum populations.
• As the logistic capacity of where it is most needed is limited, i.e., in less affluent countries, it may be necessary to introduce food rationing and stringent anti-hoarding measures to support the logistics. Indeed, one has personally experienced difficulties in procuring some essential dry foods while living in an affluent country at the beginning of the present pandemic.
• In less affluent countries, transport may become a significant obstacle to rapid deployment of food supplies. While the central authorities may be able to requisition some local vehicles, international help may be needed to procure the necessary fuel and more vehicles for the purpose.

So far, we have discussed two aspects of the logistics involved in the selling sub-system of a food system. However, as we have noted earlier, this part of food system can operate only as long as food is produced by its yielder/harvesting sub-system. Fisheries represent a harvesting sub-system operating in nature i.e., sea and bodies of fresh water. Yielder sub-system often depends on a supplementation sub-system that provides fertiliser, biocides, irrigation, etc., which supplements the deficits in ecosystems services on which agriculture depends.

Therefore, in order to ensure the usefulness of the enhancements in logistics we have discussed so far, it is also necessary to improve the logistics as they are required by the yielder/harvester and supplementation sub-systems of a food system. The very first contributor to this discussion has pointed out the problems caused by its neglect. We must now look at how to enhance the logistics of food production/harvesting:

• Quick procurement of seeds for planting, animal feed, fertilisers, etc., for timely distribution to farmers.
• Similar procurement of necessary fuel spares for farm machinery, etc., for distribution.
• It is very important that no new crops or domestic animals are introduced to food producers at this juncture. What is needed is a rapid and steady production of essential food and this can hardly be achieved by introducing new things to the farmers in less affluent countries who are not ‘expert’ agriculturalists. Practical people need pragmatic support to do what they can do best at present. When appropriate, the authorities may support a moderate increase in the areas of cultivation.
• Authorities may have to face a reduction in the number of people engaged in food production owing to Corona infection. In order to overcome this difficulty, military and civilian volunteers may be recruited to replace them under the direction of agricultural extension workers and local farmers.
• Procurement of the items listed above may require financial assistance from international bodies like the UN and other relevant donors. Under no circumstance should donors demand changes in the kinds of food produced or the methods of production currently in use.

Successful implementation of the proposed strategy viz., enhancement of food system logistics as an important aspect of the policy of ensuring the best availability of essential food items at an affordable price during the present crisis has to meet the following requirements:

• Rapidity of implementation; should the current pandemic continue, the danger in a fairly rapid decrease in food production and slowing of food preservation, storage and distribution may be anticipated. This will have disastrous consequences in loci of deprived populations like slums, rural areas, and even cities of high population density. This might lead to a geometric increase in the numbers of the hungry, and hunger is the most potent factor that compels people to override their scruples as historical examples illustrate. Therefore, it is essential to act immediately before the available food supplies run below the critical level.
• In order to ensure timely results, actions involved in food production, preservation, storage and the required logistics should only aim at a quantitative increase rather than any qualitative change, for time is short and the consequences of failure are grave.
• Skilled actors simultaneously performing different scrip’s to entertain the public can only confuse the people. Likewise, independent sources undertaking diverse efforts to enhance the food system logistics would only result in delay and waste.
• Authorities should understand that commercial food production, preservation, cooking (industrial food) and selling entities employ logistics to ‘maximise’ their gains. During the present crisis it behoves the governments elected by the people to override commercial motivation of the private sector and place public welfare as its most important goal. Doing so may require any combination of the following actions:
• Taking control of the commercial food production units (farms of every kind) to the extent that the requisite part of their output is directed to be delivered to outlets where it is most needed. Such output should be delivered in their uncooked form as flour, meat, fish, vegetables etc. Commercial entities may utilise this opportunity to show their sense of social responsibility by gladly volunteering to do this.
• Government should actively seek help from the military and national volunteer organisations to assist it in implementing the actions suggested here. All involved in this work should be directed by the central authority of the national government which may be delegated to appropriate local bodies. No independent operators should be allowed to act outside the strategic plans listed here. Total coordination of all actions is an absolute necessity under the present circumstances.
• All logistical support directed at yielder/harvesting and supplementation sub-systems should be under the operational direction of local agricultural extension officers or skilled local farmers/fishermen. Here, it is important to keep out the outside experts from offering unsolicited and inappropriate advice.
• We cannot offer any generic description of the optimal food outlet as conditions vary so much. It may even be necessary to establish rough and ready food depots in some areas neglected by larger commercial enterprises like outlet chains. Some of the possible outlets targeted by enhanced logistics may be any of the following:

1. All local cooperative shops.
2. Independent retailers.
3. Emergency food outlets organised by the local authorities, volunteer groups, etc.
4. Military units deployed locally to distribute free food parcels for the poor.

• It is highly recommended that the expertise in logistics in the military is fully and productively utilised as it is far superior to that of the civilian bodies.
• While we have always advocated a wholesome and varied balanced diet commensurable with local food culture as our ideal, this becomes somewhat academic when the conditions are grave. Therefore, we now emphasise the need for a quantitative sufficiency of food at an affordable price. However, we do not support such sufficiency to be achieved with any ready-made foods, hence our previous insistence on the distribution of raw materials to be cooked at home.

In conclusion, we must emphasise once more the urgent necessity of undertaking these enhancements of food system logistics as soon as possible in order to avert a looming disaster; it is not just a matter of nutrition, for we should never underestimate the power of mass hunger to override our moral and social scruples. The resultant behaviour would tear the current social fabric fragile as it is in many places, plunging the world into another dark age. Its progress would be rapid, for it would escalate geometrically. Hence the urgent need for action now and debate can be safely left to the posterity.

We have not sketched nuts and bolts of implementation because there are too many variations in logistical needs. Even in the affluent countries, where the tools needed for logistics are in place, their current deployment is far from being optimal. In less affluent countries, suitable vehicles, storage facilities and of course, the whole of food production may have to be supplemented. Thus, nobody can afford to be complaisant, and need to act. Here, a well coordinated international action to fill the short falls in food supplies and equipment in many countries will be necessary. It is hoped such assistance will be forthcoming without time being wasted in fruitless and acrimonious discussions and/or inept waste of time in data collection, analysis and research. Critical times call for prompt and appropriate action, and these can only spring from a holistic synthetic approach.

Best wishes!

Lal Manavado.

1) Can you share examples on how the bottlenecks listed in the policy brief have been addressed and with which result?

The bottlenecks addressed by the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) in the Brief (titled Responding to the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on food value chains through efficient logistics; published on web link: http://www.fao.org/3/ca8466en/CA8466EN.pdf on April 4, 2020), has debated some of the situations that can hinder supply of and access to adequate food to the beneficiaries (across the region of the globe). The COVID-19 pandemic is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (referred to as the COVID-19 virus). However, it seems that all food-supply chains have not been looked into, the reasons being non-availability of data/information owing to the world-wide COVID-19 epidemic (and resulting lockdown). The governments around the world have implemented measures to curb spread of the COVID-19.          

2) What has been the impact of measures to face the COVID-19 pandemic on the exports of food and cash crops?

National governments around the globe have taken appropriate measures to ensure adequate production and supply of food chain. Nature of measure taken depends on locally prevailing situations of the economy. In cities around the world, reports of panic buying and food hoarding have proliferated since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

3) What has been the impact of measures to face the COVID-19 pandemic on the imports of food ingredients, inputs, packaging and other goods related to the food value chain?

On the supply side, global grain stockpiles are healthy but could quickly be depleted as the virus disrupts food production and distribution. And shortages of animal feed, fertilizers, and pesticides have increased both the costs of farming and the risk of bad harvests. Further, in the post-outbreak era, what can food sector players do to make their supply chains both responsible and resilient? Solutions should run along below lines:

a) Go-to-market versatility: Existing go-to-market channels like bars and restaurants have closed down and expectations are that it will take 12-18 months before societies fully recover from COVID-19. Companies, therefore, need to invest in capabilities, especially focusing on online/digital solutions.

b) End-to-end supply chain management: As sourcing ingredients/merchandise becomes harder for businesses, one alternative is to work with a wider pool of suppliers, including regional ones, and keep larger strategic stocks. A broad product range is more expensive to maintain, but spreads risks. An alternative is to simplify recipes and/or remove problem products from the portfolio, resulting in a leaner, more manageable product range, less risk and lower costs. That would also free up time and resources to invest in the development of innovative new products that combine a healthy lifestyle with minimal environmental impact. Meanwhile, it’s important to invest in relationships with supply chain partners. Supplier and customer loyalty and resilience are pivotal to ensure business continuity and to thrive post-COVID-19.

4) How have logistics from the national to the local level been impacted by the pandemic and response measures?

From harvesting fruits and vegetables in India to operating meat plants in the USA, labor shortages are becoming increasingly apparent as cross-border travel restrictions in much of the world disrupt the normal seasonal cycle of migrant farm workers. And transportation shortages are making it more challenging to get produce to market.

It is important to note that nobody knows the timetable for the lifting of COVID-19 containment measures. But when the lockdown is over, businesses that have used the downtime well – by embracing supply chain innovation, diversification and collaboration, preferably also integrating sustainability goals– will come out fitter for the future.

5) What have been the implications on informal cross-border trade?

Farmers need to reconfigure their supply chains away from bulk wholesale to (currently closed) restaurants, hotels, and schools, and toward grocery stores and home delivery. But that takes time, not least because commercial and consumer food products are prepared and packaged differently. In the meantime, fresh produce has had to be destroyed. Furthermore, some major food-producing countries have already imposed export bans or quotas in response to the pandemic, as Russia and Kazakhstan have done for grain, and India and Vietnam have done for rice. Meanwhile, other countries are stockpiling food through accelerated imports, as is true of the Philippines (rice) and Egypt (wheat). Such food protectionism may seem like a good way to provide relief to the most vulnerable segments of the population, but simultaneous interventions by many governments can result in a global food-price surge

6) What challenges related to the food value chain have emerged during the relaxing of COVID-19 containment measures?

While the COVID-19 pandemic has led to falling growth, rising unemployment, widening fiscal deficits, and soaring debt in advanced and emerging economies alike, the appearance of new infection hotbeds in developing countries will mean an even starker trade-off between saving lives and protecting livelihoods. Moreover, developing countries are already facing a sudden stop in capital and remittance inflows and a collapse in tourism, while the terms of trade and currencies of the many oil and primary-commodity exporters among them are crashing. Even before COVID-19, many low-income countries were at serious risk of debt distress. And many of these economies are also highly vulnerable to a spike in food prices.

Nomura’s Food Vulnerability Index ranks 110 countries based on their exposure to large food-price swings, taking into account their nominal GDP per capita, the share of food in household consumption, and net food imports. The latest reading shows that of the 50 countries most vulnerable to a sustained rise in food prices, nearly all are developing economies that account for nearly three-fifths of the world’s population.

In fact, surging food prices would be a global problem, because they are highly regressive everywhere. Even in developed economies, a jump in food prices would drive a bigger wedge between the rich and poor, exacerbating already severe wealth inequality. No one should ignore the age-old connection between food crises and social unrest.

Multilateral institutions have mobilized quickly during the crisis to provide emergency loans to a record number of developing countries, while G20 creditors have agreed to a temporary suspension of debt-service payments from poor countries that request forbearance. But because the risks posed by surging food prices do not apply only to the most vulnerable economies, temporary debt relief may need to be extended to other countries as well.

7) Are there any additional areas not yet included in the brief that warrant particular attention with regard to logistics affecting the food supply chain?

With the pandemic threatening to wreak even more economic havoc, governments must work together to address the risk of disruptions to food supply chains. More broadly, some modicum of global policy coordination is essential to prevent food protectionism from becoming the post-pandemic new normal. However, following areas warrant particular attention by policy makers with regard to logistics affecting the food supply chain:

a) Harvests: As spring arrives, crops are rotting in the fields. Europe’s asparagus growers, for instance, are dramatically short of staff, with migrant workers from Eastern Europe unable to come to their farms due to border restrictions - or simply afraid to risk infection.

b) Logistics: Food transport, meanwhile, is steadily turning into a logistics nightmare. Where produce does get harvested, border controls and air freight restrictions are making international transport of fresh goods extremely difficult – and expensive.

c) Processing: Food processing plants are scaling or shutting down due to containment measures or staff shortages, with their suppliers scrambling to adjust their output. In Canada, for example, poultry farmers collectively acted to reduce their output.

d) Go-to-market: Companies that normally sell a significant portion of their output through out-of-home channels (for example soft drink producers) are seeing their sales slashed.

e) Sourcing: Supermarkets, while scoring stellar sales figures, are understaffed and under-delivered. Because of sourcing problems, products based on wide range of ingredients are becoming increasingly difficult to make and are therefore disappearing from store shelves.

For us Farmers in Nigeria, We have gone to farm with what we have.

Up till now we are yet to receive imputs in form of seeds, fertilizers and herbicdes, which will support our farming season. The impact of not supplying farmers what they wantbmay result to poor harvests and low out puts.

Farmers are also waiting for support as palliatives which did not come.  These may be reasons or excuseses for poor or lower harvests as at harvest time.

Hi all,Flowers are no food, but grown by farmers, used by all of us.With temples closed, weddings postponed, and other ceremonies and celebrations stopped, the Indian fresh flower industry was worst hit - who would buy flowers and why? The flower farmers are devastated watching flowers rotting on the farms and causing huge losses. Is there solution to this?

Farmers’ problems were further aggravated by rumours spread via Social Media channels particularly Whatsapp, linking animal products consumption to Covid-19, which was unfounded and baseless. Minister of Agriculture  & other higher officials issued statements in Media that chicken & meat are safe for consumption showing up photos & videos eating these items.

Thanks1

Mahesh Chander