FOOD SOLUTIONS-URBAN AGRICULTURE

According to experts watching the food scenario in Australia, that country is going to face a food crisis one day or the other, if adequate steps are not taken immediately to disperse production, creating smaller entities working nearer to consumption centers. It seems, on an average, fresh food supplies in many urban settlements reach there after traveling about 1500 kilometers in most cases and any disruption of this flow due to conditions beyond the control of the industry, people will be starved of fresh food supplies in 2-3 days time. This is the logic behind serious pleas by many planners to encourage setting up of local production centers near the urban settlements. Such an approach also reduces the carbon foot print very significantly besides providing fresher food with superior quality. Here is a commentary touching upon this issue which is very revealing.

"Steven Newton, the chairman of the Retailers Action Working Group, which plans food industry responses to potential national crises such as pandemics or floods, said that ''fresh food would be the first thing to go in a crisis''. He said the supply channels of Australia's increasingly concentrated and commercialised farming industry were more vulnerable to disaster shocks than the dispersed small-scale farming model of 30 years ago. Sally Hill, of the Youth Food Network, wants to turn back the clock to a time when fresh food came from local farms distributed across the urban hinterland and people grew vegetables in their backyards. ''The average distance food travels is 1500 kilometres,'' Ms Hill said. ''If anything interrupts that flow you have a real crisis on your hands.'' The Youth Food Movement, which grew out of the global slow food movement, argues that sourcing food locally and from smaller farms would not only insulate supply from the interruptions of disasters but also alleviate longer-term threats to food security such as climate change. ''If we had a really broad network of people going through local [farmers] or growing it themselves in their backyard you have a lot more resilient system,'' Ms Hill said. ''That tackles a whole lot of associated problems, like emissions from transporting food.'' She encourages young urbanites to think critically about where their food comes from and buy from local farmers - or grow their own. But getting young people interested and involved in agriculture is a difficult undertaking. The Bureau of Statistics has found the average Australian farmer is 55. Enrollments in agriculture courses are down dramatically. This year the University of Western Sydney's campus in Richmond - formerly Hawkesbury Agricultural College - suspended its agriculture course due to low student interest".

Theoretically such proposals are sound in concept but very difficult to implement. There are a few countries where urban agriculture is deliberately encouraged through incentive oriented policies but their impact nation wide cannot be considered significant. Australia is a country with vast land mass and centralized food production is easy to achieve. Therefore decentralization with emphasis on local production in and around urban areas may be some what formidable in nature. Still investment in developing lands near major towns and cities and creating a green belt for exclusively producing fresh crops like fruits and vegetables can bring in lot of advantages to the urban families. Parceling out small plots of land on a long lease to willing families for doing some type of farming operations, backed by evolving standardized input packages for use by these new generation of agricultural entrepreneurs may still be feasible if adequate efforts are made by the government. Such models can be thought of in many countries where land is controlled by the government and real estate activities are minimum.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

THE "APPAM WOES"!-A TEMPLE's UNENDING PROBLEMS

Neyyappam which is the most sacred prasadam offered at the ancient hill shrine at Sabarimala is again the the news for wrong reasons! This fried product made from rice flour, coconut and jaggery is a traditional component of feasts and other festival celebrations in practically every home in Kerala and is made by shallow frying the semi pasty batter in ghee in special cast iron moulds, called "Appa Kara" and depending on the temperature and time, the product can be soft or hard to chew. The Sabarimala appam is supposed to be fried to a low moisture content with a view to confer long shelf life so that pilgrims can take home the same for sharing with their families and friend. Unfortunately there is neither science nor technology involved in this preparation as it is a traditional product evolved over centuries requiring inherited or acquired skills. Food scientists seem to be least concerned to study this product from a scientific angle and preparing this product on a large scale calls for battery operations requiring artisans in huge numbers. According to recent reports, an acute scarcity of workers in this labor starved state is hampering the authorities to increase production to meet the unsatisfied demands of pilgrims who visit this shrine in droves from all over the country. Here is a take on this situation as being reported by the Travancore Devaswam Board (TDB) authorities.   

'A shortage of hands is affecting the production and distribution of 'appam prasadam', at the Lord Ayyappa temple. The situation, which has been continuing for the past two weeks, is yet to be solved. The restriction on the sale of 'appam prasadam' to two packets per pilgrim, continued  until Monday. The shortage of workers has affected 26 of the total 96 appam 'karas'. Though the production and packing of appam were given on contract, the contractor has failed to employ adequate number of workers, sources said. Contractors are offering only a meagre `200 per day for a worker. This is affecting the possibility of finding sufficient number of workers. The passive attitude of the Devaswom authorities towards the problem, has left the problem unresolved".

This sorry state of affairs is a bad reflection on the callous attitude of the state government while the food research organizations in the public sector also have to bear equal responsibility for neglecting such traditional products for a long time in their pursuit of "glamorous" research! Unlike many other temples, bringing about beneficial transformation in Sabarimala is much easier as there is no cast or communal clash when modernization is taken up. Can the Government of Kerala take adequate courage in its hand to appeal to the Government of India to direct an institution like CFTRI or DFRL or others with adequate facilities and expertise to take up immediately a project that will come up with a standardized process and a mechanized manufacturing system for manufacturing clean, hygienic, safe and high quality appam at Sabarimala. After all there is no dearth of money with TDB and it is time it spends the same for the welfare of millions of devotees coming to the shrine every year. 

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

YEAR ROUND FRESH PRODUCE-LOCAVORE MOVEMENT GETS A BOOST

Almost all fruits and vegetables are seasonal in nature available only during certain times of the year. Seasonality of crops, because of the over riding influence weather conditions have on the growth of these plants, has been the greatest drive engine for development of many food preservation and processing technologies ever since man set his foot on this planet millions of years ago. Technologies like canning, dehydration, salt and sugar seeping, freezing, refrigeration, irradiation, etc help to prolong the life of fresh produce very significantly. However the products made by these technologies always fell short of the expectations of the consume who invariably cherish fresh foods if they are available all year round. As earth has different weather zones across the latitudes and longitudes with varying temperatures, humidity, sun shine and rain fall, every country has a typical crop foot print and enables them to tap global markets during times of short supply. However this factor is slowly being marginalized after the development of technologies such as green house production and hydroponics. Here is a take on this emerging trend.

But increasingly, farmers from West Virginia to Maine and through the Midwest are going indoors to produce tomatoes and other veggies in demand during the winter months. "There's a huge increase in greenhouse operations," Harry Klee of the University of Florida tells us. "This is unprecedented, the level of opportunity," says Mock, whose business is booming. And surprisingly, according to skeptical foodies like chef Todd Wiss, the best greenhouse tomatoes come incredibly close to reproducing that taste of a perfectly ripe, summer garden tomato. "It's amazing," Wiss says after trying a greenhouse-grown Gary Ibsen's Goldheirloom tomato. These are a far cry from the flavorless supermarket tomatoes typically found this time of year. When tomatoes are shipped long distances, they're usually harvested before they're ripe, which compromises taste. Plus, as we've reported before, some of the flavor of those supermarket varieties has been accidentally bred out. The advantage of the new greenhouse model is that the tomatoes are grown not far from the cities where they're sold and eaten. And it's the locavore ethos that's driving this trend. "What's harvested today will be delivered to stores tomorrow," says Paul Mock of Mock's Greenhouse and Farm in Berkeley Springs, W.Va. Mock's business has boomed in the last few years, as retailers such as Wegmans and Whole Foods in the D.C., metro area snap up his heirloom and cherry tomatoes, as well as cucumbers and lettuces. "There were times I had to pound the pavement" to sell produce, Mock says. Now he's being paid a premium, since "locally grown" produce is in high demand. "I'm finally having fun." The taste of Mock's tomatoes starts with the seed. He uses only organic varieties, including cherry and several heirloom varieties. Allison Aubrey/NPR Now even New Englanders can get summertime-tasting, fresh tomatoes grown not too far from home. In Maine, Backyard Farms is leading the way. And vertical greenhouses are changing the landscape, too, from the new garden spot at Chicago's O'Hare Airport to Vertical Harvest of Jackson Hole, Wyo., which is just getting started. So how do they grow? Many of these operations are turning to hydroponic farming, which means the plants are not grown in soil. As we've reported before, soil is one key component of tomato flavor, but it's not the only one. The hydroponic tomatoes get their nutrients (and fertilizer) from liquid solutions fed directly via irrigation hoses. This typically requires less water and less land than traditional farming. In fact, it uses up to 10 times less land and seven times less water per pound, according to Kate Siskel of BrightFarms, a company that's scaling up local produce by building greenhouses at or near supermarketsMock says there's another advantage of indoor growing: "We've had very little damage from bugs." And he's been able to avoid using chemicals on the leaves or fruit of his plants.

Local food movement which started some years ago advocates consumption of food produced nearer to the consumption centers and naturally cities and urban areas where food consumption is greatest cannot afford to grow food crops on precious urban lands which are extremely expensive besides lack of infrastructure to support agriculture in a big way. Of course feeble attempts are being made to adopt urban agriculture in a limited way and these include sky roof gardens, terrace gardens, balcony gardens, gorilla cultivation, etc but their impact is rather limited. Advent of green house technology and hydroponics which require limited land with high production potential has opened up enormous possibilities to promote locavore conscious consumers who frown upon the destructive impact of commercial agriculture which churns out safety-suspect foods with large carbon foot prints. Hydroponic technology may revolutionize the concept of agriculture production in the coming years and offers a ray of hope for the future of this planet and health of the denizens.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

LIES, DAMNED LIES AND ABSOLUTE LIES! THE AD GURUS MUST BE HAULED UP

Recently Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) was reported to have issued "notices" to a few food manufacturing companies for promoting their products through unethical advertising campaigns claiming unproven health benefits to the consumers if they buy their brand of products. Knowing pretty well the fate of these notices, it can be safely concluded that nothing will come out of these notices because these manufacturers represent the "cream" of the Indian food industry as of now with enormous economic and political clout. Still consumer can take some comfort that "some thing" is being done to highlight the malpractices being indulged by them. It has been often proved that the State can never provide succor to its citizens who invariably have to knock on the doors of the courts to get justice. Here is an illustration of such wrong doings which have been highlighted in the following article.

"It's all lies. Nothing happens if you use it," burst out my octogenarian mother, provoked by a shampoo commercial promising to turn your tresses soft, silken, and strong. I was torn between amusement and pity. Who believes the tall claims made by advertising execs in this day and age? Certainly not my four year old who has already been informed — to fob off potential requests for crap toys and candy — that all ads are lies designed to get some sad sack to spend her precious money. And it's worked. Each time, Karisma Kapoor touts that anti-aging cream on TV, Mallika promptly declares on cue, "How silly. No cream can make you look nice." A bitter truth that the rest of us girls have taken a lifetime to learn, after spending thousands of rupees on body lotions that leave your skin dry, creams that don't whiten, hair loss shampoos that don't work, diet supplements that leave your waist undiminished. Beauty products are the worst offenders the world over in the lies-in-advertising business, but in India, they have close competition from children's 'health' drinks. A screen-grab of a Complan ad from YouTube. Image used for representational purpose only. Boost claims to provide "three times more stamina thansadharan chocolate drink". Complan Memory claims to contain "memory chargers" to ensure that your kid is a betterratta-baaz than the next. Horlicks will make your laadla"taller, stronger, sharper". And hey, don't bother with that glass of milk if it doesn't contain Bournvita to ensure the right level of calcium absorption. Pediasure, "helps in a child's growth and development". Each of these claims is "misleading and deceptive," according to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) which plans to prosecute Heinz India, GlaxoSmithKline, Abbott India and other mega-companies in 19 such cases of false advertising. There's plenty of bad news for adults as well. No, Special K will not make you skinny, those Nutrichoice biscuits may not be a healthy snack, and multigrain Maggi is likely no more nutritious than the ordinary kind. Before we get too excited at the prospect of overdue justice, we should know that the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 doesn't impose much more than a paltry Rs 10 lakh fine. A reason perhaps why FSSAI is baying for real blood. Earlier this year, FSSAI director Asim Choudhary told Indian Express that it was time to hit these companies where it really hurts: "Similarly these companies must not not be allowed to telecast such advertisements by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry and there should also be a ban on their advertising on social networking sites so that in course of time these misleading advertisements will be monitored at more than one level." An alternative strategy is to go after the other great beneficiary of false advertising: celebrities. Actors have made a fortune endorsing false claims made by a wide range of products, lending their brands to campaigns that actively deceive consumers. Investors in the Susi Emu Farms were furious with brand ambassadors Sarath Kumar and Sathyaraj.According to Times of India, "The duo had appeared in TV advertisements for Susi Emu Farms, calling it one of the most lucrative business ventures while district collectors were sending out advisories cautioning people against investing in such schemes." Earlier this year, Bollywood actors Govinda and Jackie Shroff were booked by the Food and Drug administration in a false claims case against a herbal oil endorsed by them. But why stop at them? But don't hold your breath waiting for the government to crack down on SRK, John Abraham, Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone for endorsing fairness products that often contain chemicals like hydroquinone and mercury that cause hyper-pigmentation with extended use. A few punitive cases, however, will do little to dent the constant onslaught of marketing in our consumerist world where everyone is always trying to sell us something. But here's the problem with advertising: false claims are just the tip of the iceberg. A recent study conclusively connected fast food advertising with child obesity rates in North America, while another study found that television viewing was inversely related to intake of fruit and vegetables, and positively related to intake of candy and fast food in American children. Now, I can go blue in the face telling Mallika all about TV ads that lie, but what about those dreadful chocolate biscuits? The totally crap, sugar laden stuff that doesn't pretend to be healthy and tastes so, so good. Now what are we going to do about that?

What is nauseating in this whole episode is the role played by celebrity persons whether in Bollywood or in the scientific world who lend their face and voice in promoting patently unjust claims for a few bucks. In the absence of any code of conduct under the Press Council to haul up those indulging in this nefarious activity, the culprits easily get away. Imagine an icon in Bollywood promoting a brand of noodles among children, in stead of sending the most appropriate message that children must eat more fruits and vegetables for growing and remaining strong! What is more disgusting is some of the scientists, knowledgeable as they are, lending their names for promoting products which they know very well are not that much healthy as being claimed. For all of them smell of money is so overwhelming that they chose to ignore their conscience! It is time the Press Council take appropriate action against the manufacturers, the media and the promoting persons without further delay.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

MEGA STORES AND MALLS-CAN THEY SUSTAIN INDEFINITELY?

So much is being talked, discussed and written about entry of giant global retailers into India where most of the population is used to the "pop & mom" stores around the corner of their house for their daily necessities. Of course this also happens to be a hot political issue with some parties arguing the case against allowing FDI in retail sector because of their fear about its consequences on the survival of about 8 million trading units spread across the country which form a sizable vote bank. Those vigorously pushing the case of the foreign retailers are accused of unabashed crony capitalism under the pressure of the "Big Daddy" the American government which is eyeing the vast Indian market with great hope. Emergence of on-line business as a formidable competitor to large super markets and malls for supplying many items of daily needs is raising the inevitable question whether these attractive, glittering, air-conditioned and one stop buying centers will be able to sustain themselves for long. Here is an interesting critique on this perplexing issue.

"There are very few retailers that have that kind of lifespan. There aren't too many that have been around for a hundred [years]. But even if they still exist they may be quite different. For example, you see now retailers trying very much to integrate their physical store with their Internet store. So maybe the physical store becomes mostly a showroom — you don't actually go there to buy things and walk out with them. You go there to look at things and then you order them online and then they're delivered to your house. Or maybe you order them online and you go to the store to pick them up, but the store may not be filled with quite so much merchandise. There are quite a few possibilities and I think it's really foolhardy to guess what this is going to look like frankly in 10 years, much less 50."

Take the case of India where urban land is very expensive and hard to get for setting up such huge business complexes. Will the masses patronize such places when transporting infrastructure is so primitive it may take any where from 2-3 hours to make a shopping expedition to these shopping enters? Even the affluent population with their chauffeur driven vehicles will hesitate before making a trip to these places where parking facilities are grossly inadequate. Here comes the role of on-line marketeers who can book orders from families and deliver them to their house. It is amazing that an internet company like Amazon.com has thousands of consumer items to offer and buyers get their requirements within a matter of 24-48 hours! In Bangalore an on-line company like "Big Basket" supplies fresh fruits and vegetables of high quality within Bangalore area in a matter of few hours without any risk of spoilage. Probably the surmise in the above report that in a few years time people will venture out only to physically see for themselves their choice and it will be the on-line companies who will deliver the goods ordered, a win-win situation for both the seller and the buyer!

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

WILL THE BIG FISH FROM OUTSIDE SWALLOW THE SMALL INDIAN FISH? UNLIKELY

This country is now hotly debating about the desirability of allowing foreign investment in retailing and Delhi is literally on the boil with politicians of all hues and colors expressing their views in the Parliament as well as outside. But does any one have any idea about what is happening at the ground level? Obviously not! Otherwise the discussion would have become an exercise in futility. Whether it is Walmart or Tesco or any other global giant coming to India, if past experience of other similar investors from abroad like Starbucks, McDonalds or KFC is to be reckoned with, it is not easy for any of them to get a firm foothold in India for a long time to come. The reason is that the culture, tradition, lifestyles and attitudes of a vast majority of the people in this country, except for a minority segment, will not allow them to co-habit with the ambiance, luster, lavishness and service offered by the investors from abroad who may have deep pockets and vast experience in luring new customers. Here is a piece of nostalgic reminiscence of a typical Indian citizen after experiencing the pleasure of seeing the foreign players operating in the country, enjoying the same for a few days and then reverting back to the old style of dhabas and chaiwallahs.

'A blind lascivious beggar sings a bhojpuri ditty. Pregnant clouds over Bombay monsoon raindrops like the breasts of Khajuraho; heavy and laden. It is an overcast afternoon and the sun is no more. Humidity and sweat tugs at the will to go on. A long line of India's young and trendy in Converse, in UCB, all Adidas and iPhonery wait for their turn at the recently opened Starbucks. Growing up in India, I remember queuing up outside the very first McDonalds in New Delhi for an hour to have a seven-rupee ice cream. KFC took us to giddy heights of rapture. A chicken wing in hand and a glass of frothy Coke in the other, we had arrived. We were no longer Indians any more. We were cosmopolitan Americans. It didn't last that long. We fell out of love with the Golden Arches and the Colonel and reverted back to our cuisine. The scales fell and we realised that tandoori chicken, a bit of chilli and a pickled onion on the side was timeless. It was forever. Similarly, this is still a nation of roadside and railway station chai-wallahs. City workers, students and manual labourers all frequent little shacks by the roadside for a spot of tea dust in hot milk. Corpulent politicians in spotless tunics, world-weary swamis and lecherous vagabonds squat under flimsy tarpaulins with a kulhad of cardamom chai and a slice of wheat rusk; a rare egalitarianism in a country riven by class and caste.The friendly chai-wallahwith his muzzein-like call in the morning is a constant in an ever-changing India. Starbucks and a host other shiny coffee-wallahs will never equal the pavement camaraderie".

Probably there may be lot of truth in what is said above. But one need not expect that these new mega players with sackful of money will run away soon from the country because their strength is patience, perseverance and vast experience in dealing with people in emerging countries like China, Mexico, Brazil, Indonesia etc. A classical example of am entirely foreign product taking deep roots in India is the Noodles first introduced almost two decades ago and it was after sustaining persistent losses for a long time did this product started making money for the manufacturers. Probably the new foreign players like Starbucks may also become established after a few years if they persist, though losing heavily in the first few years in the bargain. Same applies to FDI in retail also. The task for foreign players is not going to be easy and they should not expect an easy walk over any where in the near future.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

AIR LINE FOODS MORE RISKY?- NEW FINDINGS

Air travel, especially of long duration, is both tiresome and boring. In-flight music and video entertainment facilities make such travels some what tolerable while the foods served are supposed to be of mouth-watering quality. Modern Air Lines companies even offer diverse menu options to cater to different ethnic and cultural back ground of potential travelers. It is in this context that recent reports damning the safety of these foods emanating from the US are raising some alarm among travelers using US Carriers. While FDA is to be complimented for bringing to surface gross violations of hygiene and sanitary standards in kitchens where the foods are prepared for supply to the air lines. What is appalling is the response of the Carriers brushing aside these allegations lightly and probably FDA may have to take severe deterrent action against such repeat violators immediately lest the passenger confidence on airline foods is shattered. Here is a gist of the report culled out from reliable international media which provides a sad reading.

Airplane food has long been the butt of jokes for being bland, unimaginative and generally unappetizing, but now there is evidence to suggest that the meals served by airlines are not just lackluster, but they might actually make passengers sick. Inspections of airlines and outside caterers conducted by the Food and Drug Administration have revealed facilities crawling with mice, roaches and ants, and food preparation areas swarming with flies. According FDA health violation records obtained by ABC's 20/20, over the past four years, there have been more than 1,500 violations in the airline food industry. The federal agency said that 'significant' problems were found at a much higher rate than in other industry it inspects.

No one is arguing that in-flight catering is an easy job but unless some minimum safety precautions are taken health of many passengers may be adversely affected. It was not along ago that under recessionary trends, air traffic volume started declining and with fierce competition among the players to attract traffic, food was being considered as an instrument to cajole passengers to travel by air. There were even a few reports that some major air line companies were planning to upgrade their menu to offer very high quality preparations on par with 5-star restaurants. Alas that proved to be a non-starter once the air traffic became normal. All air line must understand the basic fact that passengers are not yearning for home foods while they travel but they will never compromise with products prepared in infected and infested kitchens which can put their life in danger. It is time that kitchens preparing foods for air line passengers are brought under a global safety regime and protocols that can be easily monitored by competent food safety specialists on a 24/7 basis.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com