Agricultural  Pathways  to  Improved  Nutri8on:  Ge<ng  Policies  Right!  

 

Prabhu  Pingali  Professor  of  Applied  Economics  &  Director,  Tata-­‐Cornell  Ini8a8ve  for  Agriculture  &  Nutri8on,  Cornell  University  

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Tata-­‐Cornell  Agriculture  and  Nutri8on  Ini8a8ve  

•  Persistence  of  under  weight  births  &  Childhood  stun5ng  

•  Rising  inequality  in  food  &  nutri5on  access  •  Increasing  incidence  of  obesity  •  Growing  food  safety  concerns  

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Global  Nutri8onal  Challenges  

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The  nature  and  magnitude  of  the  nutri8onal  challenge  varies  by  the  stage  of  structural  transforma8on  of  a  country  

Structural  Transforma5on:  what  is  it?    

Four  inter-­‐related  processes  define  structural  transforma5on:  •  A  declining  share  of  agriculture  in  GDP  and  employment  

•  A  rural  to  urban  migra5on  that  s5mulates  the  process  of  urbaniza5on  

•  The  rise  of  a  modern  industrial  and  service  sector  •  A  demographic  transi5on  from  high  to  low  rates  of  births  and  deaths  

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Structural  transforma8on:  what  is  it?  

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Structural  Transforma8on  is  a  Historical  and  Universal  Phenomenon  

Low Productivity Agriculture

Commercialized Agriculture

Modernizing Agriculture

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Structural  Transforma8on,  Human  Development,  and  Agricultural  Performance  

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Structural  Transforma8on  and  Nutri8on  

Global  map  of  stun5ng  

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The  first  1,000  days  of  life…    

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~9  months  in    utero  

 ~6  months    breasPeeding  

Early  childhood    

Message:  to  impact  child  nutri5on  and  safeguard  cogni5ve  and  physical  development,  targe8ng  women  and  girls  during  childbearing  years  (ages  15-­‐45)  is  essen8al.    

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‘window  of  opportunity’  

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So  what  does  agriculture  have  to  do  with  it?  

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Effect  of  policy  support  for  agriculture  versus  non-­‐agriculture  on  the  prevalence  of  stun8ng  

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Nutri8on  is  mul8dimensional  

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For  rural  households,  agriculture  is  central  to  food  access  

Agricultural  policies  are  central  for  influencing:  •  Rural  household  

income  (food  affordability)    

•  Regional/local  food  supply  (produc8vity  and  food  diversity)  

INCREASED  MATERNAL  HEALTH  AND  REDUCTION  IN  CHILDHOOD  STUNTING  

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Agriculture  is  only  part  of  the  equa8on,  complimentary  policies  are  essen8al  

Complimentary  policies  for  behavior  change  and  environmental  change  are  essen8al  components:  •  Behavior  (educa8on,  

women’s  empowerment,  etc.)  

•  Water,  sanita8on,  and  hygiene  efforts  

INCREASED  MATERNAL  HEALTH  AND  REDUCTION  IN  CHILDHOOD  STUNTING  

Food  system  classifica8on  

Characteris8cs  

Low  produc5ve  systems  

•  Li[le  to  no  Green  Revolu5on  gains  •  Low  per  capita  income  •  Low  agricultural  produc5vity  •  Low  diet  diversity  •  High  under  nutri5on  &  micronutrient  malnutri5on    

Modernizing  Systems  

•  Green  Revolu5on  gains  •  Low-­‐medium  per  capita  income  •  Moderate  agricultural  produc5vity  •  Moderate  diet  diversity  •  Persistent  micronutrient  malnutri5on    

Commercial/export  systems  

•  Medium-­‐high  per  capita  income  •  Higher  opportunity  for  agricultural  produc5vity  •  High  diet  diversity  •  coexistence  of  under  nutri5on  and  over  nutri5on  

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One  size  does  not  fit  all…  contextualizing  ag-­‐nutri8on  policies  

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 Vicious  cycles  of  low  produc8vity  systems…  

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Low  diet  diversity    

High  rela5ve  price  of  non-­‐staples  

Poverty  

Micronutrient  malnutri5on  

Low  produc5ve  staple  crop  systems  

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Low  produc8ve  agriculture:  policy  recommenda8ons    

Context-­‐specific  focus    

Specific  policies  

•  Cereal-­‐based  intensifica0on  strategies    

•  Produc0vity-­‐focused  investments  for  smallholder  farmers  

•  Biofor0fica0on  of  staple  crops  •  For0fica0on  of  staples  

•  Complimentary  interven0ons  

•  Kitchen  gardens  for  year-­‐round  access  to  micronutrient-­‐rich  foods  

•  Backyard  livestock  and  poultry    •  Social  safety  net  programs  for  the  

most  vulnerable  

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 Modernizing  systems  and  dietary  change:  how  could  the  story  go?  

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Income  increases  

Increasing  produc5vity  for  staples  

Demand  for  non  staples  increases  

Increases  in  cereal  (calorie)  supply  and  reduced  cereal  prices  

Farmers  diversify  into  new,  developing  markets  for  micronutrient  and  protein-­‐dense  foods  

Food  supply  diversity  increases  

Agriculture  commercializa5on  con5nues  

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Modernizing  food  systems:  stalled  progress  because  of  misaligned  incen8ves  and  policies  changes  the  story  

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Income  increases  

Increasing  produc5vity  for  staples  

Demand  for  non  staples  increases  

Increases  in  cereal  (calorie)  supply  and  reduced  cereal  prices  

Farmers  diversify  into  new,  developing  markets  for  micronutrient  and  protein-­‐dense  foods  

Food  supply  diversity  increases  

This  link  depends  on  policy  and  market  environment  

Agriculture  commercializa5on  con5nues  

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When  policies  and  market  incen5ves  don’t  enable  farmers  to  meet  a  growing  demand  for  non-­‐staples,  the  the  result  is:    •  Limited  supply  of  micronutrient  and  

protein-­‐dense  foods    •  Impacts  for  dietary  diversity  

availability  •  Sustained  high  rela5ve  prices  of  non-­‐

staples  •  Impacts  for  dietary  diversity  

affordability  •  Agriculture  incomes  lag  behind  

•  Impacts  on  absolute  food  budgets  

All  too  oden,  poor  policy  and  market  environments  halt  or  disable  diet  transforma8on…  

Demand  for  non  staples  increases  

Farmers  diversify  into  new,  developing  markets  for  micronutrient  and  protein-­‐dense  foods  

This  link  depends  on  policy  and  market  environment  

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Modernizing  Agricultural  Systems:  policy  recommenda8ons  

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Context-­‐specific  focus   Specific  policies  

Linking  farmers  to  markets  

•  Investments  in  infrastructure  •  Investments  in  essen5al  ins5tu5ons  (credit,  insurance,  

land  rights,  etc.)  •  Investments  in  public-­‐private  partnerships  

Strengthening  demand  for  micronutrient  and  protein-­‐rich  foods  

•  Policies  that  establish  product  standards  and  be[er  trading  rela5onships  

•  Policies  improving  food  safety  

Suppor5ng  agriculture  as  a  business  

•  Upgrading  tradi5onal  markets  and  inves5ng  in  informal  actors  

•  For  poorest  popula5ons  in  Africa  and  South  Asia  •  Health  and  well-­‐being  in  rural  areas  lag  far  behind  urban  areas  •  Produc5vity  effects  more  serious  where  physical  labor  cri5cal  input  

•  Women  are  par5cularly  vulnerable  -­‐  Employment  paCerns:    

-­‐  women  play  a  predominant  role  in  the  produc5on  of  food  crops  ;  especially  in  Africa.    

-­‐  Biological  vulnerabili0es:    -­‐  women  have  special  vulnerabili5es  related  to  reproduc5ve  health  and  they  are  adversely  affected  by  health  and  nutri5on  risks.    

-­‐  Life  responsibili0es:  -­‐   women  have  a  set  of  unique  responsibili5es  in  the  home,  par5cularly  in  terms  of  the  care  of  children.  

Role  of  Health  and  Nutri8on  in  Agricultural  Development    

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Complimentary  policies  

Behavior  change:  •  Educa5on,  

extension  

Harnessing  the  power  of  women’s  groups.  •  Nutri5on  

messaging  through  women’s  groups  

Water,  sanita5on,  hygiene  •  Clean  water  technology  

development  •  Sanita5on  technologies  

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The  con8nuing  relevance  of  agriculture  in  all  stages  of  development:  key  policy  priori8es  

Investments  in  enhancing  of  food  supply  •  Investments  in  technology,  research  and  development  for  produc5vity  and  

nutri5on  enhancement  •  Investments  in  post-­‐harvest  technologies  and  infrastructure    Agri-­‐market  investments  •  Investments  necessary  to  connect  farmers  to  markets  •  Policies  aimed  at  opening  up  foreign  direct  investment  in  food  value  chains  •  Moderniza5on  of  extension    •  Broadening  extension  to  include  nutri5on  messaging    Investments  in  health  and  social  environment  •  Investments  in  sanita5on  (toilets)  and  access  to  clean  water  •  Empowerment  of  women  and  incen5vizing  women’s  self-­‐help  groups    Investments  for  food  affordability  and  access  •  Rela5ve  price  changes  •  Con5nua5on  of  safety  net  programs  that  target  vulnerable  popula5ons  

Thank  you!  

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Website:    tci.cals.cornell.edu    Blog:  blogs.cornell.edu/agricultureandnutri8on/    

   Thank  you!