Various readings on Urban food supplies available on Internet

 

http://mitpsc.mit.edu/blog/iap12-sam-kornstein/

http://www.somethingsbrewing.com/2013/01/sustainable-approaches-reducing-food-waste-india/

http://www.harvestpower.com

on another note:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/banana-train-to-azadpur-mandi-from-next-week/1000286/

more:

Hi-tech Hubs of Harvest

Opaque and inefficient vegetable markets may be history.

Azadpur Mandi: You'll stop eating vegetables if you saw them here The Azadpur Sabzi Mandi, a wholesale vegetable bazaar in North Delhi, is touted as Asia's biggest fruit and vegetables market. It may also be the continent's most corrupt and inefficient. Touts control not just the seller but also prices, farmers are shortchanged all the time, and buyers have to make do with shoddy products. Concepts like supply chain management, cold chains, and post-harvest infrastructure are naturally alien here-as in most Indian mandis; and, to that extent, the Azadpur Sabzi Mandi is a microcosm of everything that can go-and does go-wrong in the country's wholesale markets. Cut now to the National Dairy Development Board's (NDDB's) Safal fruit and vegetable market in Bangalore. The hi-tech market provides a transparent and efficient system for buyers and the sellers to make wholesale transactions. The auction market covers more than 200 farmers' associations and more than 50,000 farmers spread across Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. This system allows farmers to plan their production and provides a common platform for buyers and growers to negotiate better rates. By setting up an efficient terminal market for horticultural produce, the NDDB has stimulated productivity, raised quality standards, reduced losses and ensured consumer access to an increasing supply of fresh produce at reasonable prices. In other words, NDDB's market is everything that the Azadpur Sabzi Mandi is not. Mercifully, the central government has taken notice of the Karnataka example, and has formulated plans to launch eight more such terminals in Nasik, Nagpur and Mumbai in Maharashtra, Rai (Haryana), Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh), Patna (Bihar), Kolkata (West Bengal) and Chandigarh through the National Institute of Agricultural Marketing. Like the existing format in Bangalore, these terminal markets will have a hub-and-spoke format, with the terminal market (the hub) linked to a number of collection centres (the spokes). The scope of these markets, though, would be wider than that of the Safal model, as they will involve more commodities and focus on exports too. "These complexes will cater to domestic as well as export demand as they will be a one-point centre for all commodities; so we are stressing a lot on quality check and grading activities in these centres," says W.R. Reddy, Director (Marketing), Agriculture Ministry. The terminal markets will offer a wide range of facilities like grading and sorting, electronic auctioning, quality testing laboratories, cold storage, seed-distribution and even banking facilities all under one roof. They will also have post-harvest infrastructure that's needed for threshing, drying, storage and processing. Under this model, there will be no service charges, fewer intermediates, less handling, as well as better and modern infrastructure for handling and processing of perishable produce, ensuring better produce quality, and efficient marketing, thereby benefiting both farmers and consumers. "By doing away with the middlemen and with the e-auction system, these markets will ensure that farmers get the actual price of the produce and are not cheated," says Kalyan Chakravathy, Country Head, Food and Agriculture business, yes Bank, which is also the national consultant and financial advisor to the eight modern terminal market complexes. Agrees Rajesh Srivastava, Rabo India Finance's Managing Director and Head (Corporate and Commercial Banking): "A lot of foodgrain and vegetables are getting wasted because of inadequate infrastructure. India needs 200 such terminals throughout the country." Srivastava has already submitted the feasibility study to several other states. Rabo India Finance is in advanced talks with the West Bengal ministry for setting up a terminal market near Kolkata. The terminal markets will be either built, owned and operated by a corporate or by a consortium of companies. The investment will be shared by the private companies and the central government in the ratio of 51:49. For the retail companies involved, the terminal market will be a direct source of procurement for their own shelves. Companies such as Reliance, Tata Chemicals, Voltas, DLF, FieldFresh and Pantaloon are a few that have bid for partnerships in the terminal market complexes. "For our upcoming cash and carry stores, the terminal markets will be a perfect procurement centre for all kinds of food items," says Saurabh B. Chadha, Head (New Projects), Pantaloon Retail. Markets like the Azadpur Sabzi Mandi will by then hopefully be resurrected. -Pallavi Srivastava