Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

‘Value-addition a tool for poverty alleviation’

Baboo M. Nair

Thiruvananthapuram: Value-addition holds the key to the revival of the agriculture sector in India, according to Baboo M. Nair, food scientist and Professor Emeritus at Lund University, Sweden. Talking to The Hindu, Dr. Baboo Nair, who was here recently as part of a delegation of scientists from Sweden, said the government should take steps to promote the development of value-added agriculture products for export.

Value-addition, he said, could be used as a tool for poverty alleviation in countries such as India. “At an extremely low level of daily income, poverty becomes a trap maintaining a vicious circle of events starting from low income, low food security and low productivity to low income gain. Most of the people depending on agriculture remain poor because they continue to be suppliers of raw materials with very low added value.”

Mr. Baboo Nair said value-addition could offer a solution to the problem of low agriculture productivity. “The efficiency of the Indian agro-food industry is very low. The present level of value-addition is only about 7 per cent. The dairy sector has the highest with 15 per cent and fruits and vegetables around 2 per cent.”

The food scientist said the situation demanded a shift of priorities from low-cost products for the domestic market to high-value products for export. “The focus of many development initiatives including the Five Year Plans has been on producing more food for the people at low cost. This has failed to offer room for increased income for the people dependent on food production for their livelihood. It is now time to look up. The situation calls for a policy reorientation to promote the development of value-added products for the global market. In that sense, globalisation has opened up a window of opportunity for India. It should be possible for a person in New York to get a can of mango lassi from an automatic vending machine.”

Mr. Baboo Nair, who was instrumental in setting up the SASNET ( Swedish South Asian Network) for fermented foods, called on research institutions in India to focus on fermentation as the method of choice in promoting food processing. Born at Thiruvattar in Kanyakumari district, Mr. Baboo Nair had his early education at Fort High School, Mar Ivanios College and College of Agriculture. After securing a B.Sc. degree in Agriculture from Kerala University in 1960, he studied dairy technology at Dairy Science College at Anand, Gujarat. He later worked at the Amul Dairy as a technical officer and as project executive with the National Dairy Development Board of India.

From Anand, Mr. Baboo Nair shifted to Sweden for higher studies with a full scholarship.

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