Potato acreage in India is likely to drop by 15-20% in the new season. Farmers suffered last year due to a decline in prices following a higher production. According to an initial estimate, the losses could run into few thousand crores with Bengal farmers suffering the most. In this backdrop, a further expansion in area could weaken the prices even as sowing has started across Uttar Pradesh, Bengal, Bihar and Punjab....

-The Telegraph   Tribals will now be involved in value-addition and marketing of minor forest produce (MFP) such as honey and tamarind so they can get better prices. For the first time, a group of private companies has come forward to set up units that will carry out the value-addition and train tribal youths in the process as well as marketing the products. The firms will set up such units under the public-private-partnerships (PPP),...

-The Economic Times   If food inflation seems to be pinching more, it is because vegetable prices barely decline in winters, milk rises through the year and egg prices remain high in summers - all because of rising demand.  Over the years, the seasonal variation in prices has dropped and consumers do not have the option of shifting to cheaper produce to keep daily costs down, says a recent Reserve Bank of India...

-The Hindu   Noted Jaipur-based economist V. S. Vyas has expressed concern over “progressive diminution” of cultivated holdings which he says has led to stagnation in the yield of major crops and rendered agricultural income insufficient for farmers to make ends meet. A sharp decline was also being witnessed in per capita food production, he said. Delivering the Tarlok Singh Memorial Lecture at the University of Hyderabad over the weekend, Professor Vyas said...

-The Hindu Business Line   Input subsidy expenses not contributing to boost productivity The World Bank has said that South Asia's foodgrain stock management, especially in India, needs to improve to tackle inflation. In its focus on food inflation in South Asia, the bank said that high stocks have led to high wastage due to inadequate storage capacity and technology. According to World Bank's estimates, the Food Corporation of India lost 10-16 million tonnes...