BUSINESS CAN BE A "BINDING FORCE"-THE "PULSE" AGREEMENT

A hungry China is a sure bet for good business for many developed countries as the Chinese foreign exchange holdings are very high sufficient to pay for import of goods required by the population there. USA and Canada are two countries which produce lot of excess agriculture crops including food which are more than that required by their population. Interestingly pulses are never a significant part of neither American nor Canadian diets but still commodities like dry peas and Lentils are produced in these two countries most of which need to be exported. Chinese is also not a legume consuming country and the recent agreement for China to import legumes from Canada is therefore surprising. Here is a take on this new bon homie between Canada and China. 

"We've been told China is a hungry country looking for partners to help feed it. Canada, a country heavily dependent on exports, is emerging as an important player in this quest. China has the ways and means to pay its bills, and represents a superb opportunity for North American farmers. It's becoming increasingly aggressive in wanting to sign food-related deals with the western world. Although it claims to be about 95 per cent self-sufficient in grains, its agricultural trade deficit grew by almost 50 per cent last year, as its population grows interested in an increasingly varied and healthy menu. Among its new interests are pulses — peas and lentils among them, which despite having been around forever are becoming renowned for their exceptional nutritional benefits. Canadian farmers grow the world's best pulses, and last year Pulse Canada, the progressively minded commodity group representing these crops, began collaborating with the Chinese Cereals and Oils Association to pursue new product development using pulses. Pulse Canada says Canadian and Chinese researchers are now working together to introduce pulses into Chinese staple foods such as noodles, steamed breads and dumplings, as well as snack foods and meat products. Last week, Canada and China signed a new memorandum of agreement — in which education, agriculture, science and technology were specifically mentioned — to increase the connection between the two countries, opening even more doors for development as the two countries drive toward a potential free-trade agreement. At the signing of the memorandum, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the rapidly increasing commercial, cultural and scholastic ties between our two countries are creating new jobs and economic growth. Indeed, this is a hot market and a growth area that Canada does not want to miss."

One is reminded of the historic attempts in the past by the US in expanding wheat consumption in Asian countries like Korea so that the surplus wheat production can be exported to these countries. Organizations like the Wheat Associates were conspicuous by their promotional activities in countries like India till recently and to day wheat has become a standard item in the menu of many erstwhile rice eating nations. Same is happening in legumes also and the presence of agencies representing the growers in the US and Canada are working over time to find markets for their pulses in these places. The unfortunate aspect of this development is that the imported pulses compete directly with domestic produce and with heavy subsidies received by the farmers in these countries the market price for the imported pulses are invariably much less than that of the local produce. China may well aware of these implications while operationalizing the bilateral agreement.

V.H.POTTY

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THE GREAT MEAT EATERS OF INDIA-KERALA'S UNIQUE "DISTINCTION"

"God's own country" some times jocularly referred to as Dog's own country is distinct from other parts of India in many ways. Foremost it is the first state which became 100% literate showing the world that such feats can be achieved even in a developing country if there is a will. Ironically schools in Kerala are being shuttered because of inadequate students! Kerala also occupies the pride of place when it comes to earning foreign exchange for the country, their citizens bringing the largest chunk. Remember Kerala is also the "alcohol" barrel of the country, the liquor consumption being the highest in entire India! Added to this is the latest "feather" in its cap that puts the state in the fore front as far as meat consumption is concerned, if the Animal Husbandry Department of the state is to be believed.

Kerala - which leads the country in several indicators including literacy - is also the highest consumer of meat with a daily requirement of over 5,000 tonnes, according to the state animal husbandry department. Animal husbandry director R. Vijayakumar does not find the figure of 5,034.96 tonnes a day surprising as 80 per cent of the state's residents are non-vegetarians. "The sad part is that the domestic production of meat (beef, mutton and chicken) is just around 264.31 tonnes," Vijaykumar said, adding: "The rest comes from nearby states." The department has collected this data for a national meeting in Gujarat later this month to review the production of meat and allied products. The survey finds chicken to be the most preferred. In fact, from a mere six per cent share in 1990, it now accounts for 45 per cent of the meat consumed in Kerala. "The eating profile of our people has undergone a huge change," Vijayakumar said.

"With a large number of IT professionals working in key centres, the fast food habit has picked up hugely. Hence meat is the most preferred item." In fiscal 2009-10, Keralites spent a staggering Rs. 2,844 crore on chicken, of which Rs. 1,752 crore went to poultry farms outside the state. "There is a golden opportunity here as there is immense potential to rear chicken, pig, goats and even rabbit," Vijaykumar said. "Now all the money is going to neighbouring states," Vijaykumar said. "We are going to give huge emphasis to this sector in our plans." Kottayam, Thrissur and Malappuram lead the state's 14 districts in meat consumption. In fiscal 2009-10, a record 6.1 million cattle came into the state through various check posts; another 1.8 million are estimated to have entered unchecked.
Of the 33 million people in Kerala, according to Vijaykumar, Christians and Muslims together constitute around 47 per cent and most of the meat eaters are from these communities. "If people in our state take to animal husbandry seriously, it would only benefit them," Vijayakumar said.

What is intriguing about the above figures is that taking them at face value Kerala's consumption works out to almost 27% of the country figure of 6.8 million tons of meat production annually. According to Planning Commission, average meat consumption in India as a whole is 5 kg per capita per year and Keralites seem to be consuming four times this quantity, working out to about 20 kg per capita. World wide the average corresponding figure is 43 kg and as such neither Kerala nor India as a country, is any where near the world average. Probably huge consumption of liquor and prevalence of predominantly non-vegetarian population must be accounting for this phenomenon. There is a point in the assertion of the animal husbandry department that scope for establishing meat based industry in the state is enormous as most of the meat animals are brought from neighboring states. Such meat based projects need to be based on the concept of integrated farms with breeding and rearing facilities and slaughtering infrastructure. In a land starved state like Kerala, is this feasible? Unlikely!

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com