India needs to dramatically ramp up the productivity of its maize crop to keep pace with growing consumption, as cereal becomes an increasingly key piece of the country’s food, feed and fuel security puzzle.
Maize ranks as India’s third most cultivated cereal crop, following rice and wheat. Often referred as the ‘Queen of Cereals’, its cultivation has by all accounts been a huge success. Maize production and productivity growth have outstripped production and productivity growth for both rice and wheat in the decade from 2012-13 to 2022-23.
Despite some high-performing regions, India’s average maize productivity lags the world’s at 3.5 tonnes per hectare as compared to 6 tonnes on average globally.
The impact of this lack of productivity is beginning to be felt. With demand surging on account of growing food consumption, need for animal feed and now India's ethanol push, production has begun falling behind.The demand for maize is expected to rise to 45-50 million tonnes in 2030-31 before surging to 86-109 million tonnes in 2047-48, according to a report by NITI Aayog.
A ‘business as usual’ scenario, in which maize productivity continues to trend as it is today, will lead to a shortfall of 2 million tonnes in 2031 widening to 6 million tonnes in 2047-48, the report predicts. However, in a High Yield Growth scenario our farmlands would produce enough maize to meet demand.
India’s self-sufficiency when it comes to maize thus hinges on transitioning productivity away from the ‘Business as Usual’ to a ‘High Yield Growth’ scenario. Achieving this will require a comprehensive transformation across the entire maize value chain-from root to stem.
The seeds of change need to begin with, well, the maize seed. Maize is a hardy cereal. Its productivity is better than that of rice or wheat, as highlighted above, despite the majority of the maize crop being cultivated on unirrigated land.
Intensifying research and development into the creation of hardier, drought and pest resistant varieties of maize would boost yields even in the current circumstances. But they becomeall the more crucial in a world in which global-warming induced climate change is making coaxing yields from crops increasingly difficult for farmers.
In addition to developing more resistant varieties of maize, the use of cutting-edge, technology-informed pest management and crop protection measures is also crucial.
Warming temperatures are leading to an increase in pest attacks. Adopting Integrated Pest Management strategies together with the use of technology like sensor-based Internet of Things (IOT) mated to Artificial Intelligence and drones can significantly reduce crop losses. A combination of IoT and AI can precisely calculate inputs and interventions required while drones can aid in early detection of pest or disease outbreaks.
R&D should also focus on developing varieties with greater starch content, especially when it comes to maize meant for ethanol production. India hit its target to achieve 20 per cent ethanol blending in petrol this year, five years ahead of schedule. The country is now setting its sights even higher, aiming to boost the ethanol component in petrol to 30 per cent by 2030.
Sugarcane and maize are the two primary crops used as feedstock to produce ethanol. Currently 18-20 per cent of India’s maize yields go toward production of ethanol. Boosting the starch content will allow for better ethanol recoverability per unit of maize, improving the crop's viability as an ethanol feedstock and thereby boosting its share as a source of green fuel.
In doing so, maize, far less water intensive than the thirsty sugarcane crop, will help India conserve water, an increasingly stressed resource, in the country’s pursuit of its emissions reduction goals.
Maize is a highly versatile crop that finds use in several industries from food, beverages and animal feed, to packaging, adhesives, cosmetics and energy. In that sense, it presents a huge economic opportunity for the country’s farmers.
But that economic potential is often left unrealised due to poor market linkages and inadequate post-harvest storage options.
Majority of the maize farmers in India are small landholders with holdings of less than a hectare on average. Lacking collective bargaining power, they are often reliant on agents and middlemen to take their produce to market, depressing price realisation.
Alongside the creation of Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), the embrace of digital technology can directly connect farmers with the various industries that rely on maize as a raw material.
Inadequate storage takes a further toll on prices as it leaves the harvested crop vulnerable to moisture, temperature changes and humidity as well as exposure to biotic threats like pests and insects. This affects the quality of the produce and by extension its monetary worth.
Reports suggest that as much as 3-4 per cent of the harvested maize produce is lost to improper post-harvest management. Adopting a scientific approach to storage can dramatically reduce post-harvest losses to 1-2 per cent.
Maize, because of its versatility and application in a range of industries, is a crucial crop not just for India’s food security but also its economic security.
As economic development accelerates, fueling the country’s push to become a fully developed nation by 2047, maize is going to become an increasingly prominent driver of growth. To put it simply, this could be India’s ‘Maize Moment’. We have to ensure, for the sake of our farmers and our national security, that we don’t miss it.
The writer is CEO - Crop Protection Business, Godrej Agrovet Ltd.; views are personal