Lok Sabha Question No. 2156 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-12-20
Subject: Post Harvest Food Loss
Ministry: FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES
Asked by: Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy

## GOVERNMENTOF INDIA MINISTRY OF FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2156

ANSWERED ON 20.12.2022

## POST HARVEST FOOD LOSS

## 2156.  SHRI MAGUNTA SREENIVASULU REDDY:

Will the Minister of FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES be pleased to state:

- (a) the method used by the Government to gauge post harvest food losses;
- (b) whether the Government has considered adopting uniform standards for measuring and accounting which would allow for a standard metric to estimate food loss;
- (c) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (d) whether the Government has ever generated comparable data from different studies over time and from different States and areas for the same; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES (SHRI PRAHLAD SINGH PATEL)

(a) to (e). The Ministry of Food Processing Industries is mandated to create post-harvest infrastructure and  processing  facilities,  inter-alia,  to  boost  the  overall  development  of  the  food  processing  sector including reduction in post-harvest losses; enhancing value addition etc. The Ministry estimates postharvest losses in various agriculture commodities through various studies based on primary surveys. Two studies were commissioned by the Ministry through (i) Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology (ICAR-CIPHET)  titled 'Assessment of Quantitative Harvest and Post Harvest Losses of Major Crops and commodities in India' (2015); and (ii) NABARD Consultancy Service Pvt. Ltd (NABCONS) titled 'Study to Determine Post-Harvest Losses of Agri Produce in India' (2022).

The comparative findings of these two studies are as under:

## Post-harvest losses of major crops and commodities

| Crops / Commodities      | Loss (%)                         | Loss (%)                      |
|--------------------------|----------------------------------|-------------------------------|
|                          | As per ICAR-CIPHET Study (2015)* | As per NABCONS study (2022)** |
| Cereals                  | 4.65 - 5.99                      | 3.89-5.92                     |
| Pulses                   | 6.39 - 8.41                      | 5.65-6.74                     |
| Oil Seeds                | 3.08 - 9.96                      | 2.87-7.51                     |
| Fruits                   | 6.70-15.88                       | 6.02-15.05                    |
| Vegetables               | 4.58-12.44                       | 4.87-11.61                    |
| Plantation Crops &Spices | 1.18-7.89                        | 1.29-7.33                     |
| Milk                     | 0.92                             | 0.87                          |
| Fisheries (Inland)       | 5.23                             | 4.86                          |
| Fisheries (Marine)       | 10.52                            | 8.76                          |
| Meat                     | 2.71                             | 2.34                          |
| Poultry                  | 6.74                             | 5.63                          |
| Egg                      | 7.19                             | 6.03                          |