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The Expansion of Modern Grocery Retailing and Trade in Developing Countries (July 2011). Modern grocery retailing has been expanding rapidly in developing countries. The expansion could affect food trade by helping consumers achieve their preferences for dietary diversity, convenience, and quality, as well as by introducing supply chain efficiencies that may reduce real food prices. The findings suggest that modern retail expansion has been associated with the demand for nonprice characteristics, such as convenience in food shopping and preparation, rather than developing more efficient supply chains.
Indian
Sugar Sector Cycles Down, Poised to Rebound (April 2010). A
cyclical decline in sugar production is shifting India, the world’s
second largest producer, from net exporter to net importer during
2009/10 and contributing to the recent runup in global sugar prices,
but production is poised to rebound in 2010/11. The recent
swings in Indian sugar production are primarily due to a policy-induced
cycle that has become increasingly pronounced.
Growth and Equity Effects of Agricultural
Marketing Efficiency Gains in India (December 2009). Agriculture is the largest source
of employment in India, and food accounts for about half of consumer
expenditures. More efficient agricultural marketing could generate
economywide gains in output and wages, raise agricultural producer
prices, reduce consumer food prices, and increase private consumption,
particularly by low-income households.
The Environment for Agricultural
and Agribusiness Investment in India (July 2008). Despite
strong overall economic growth and strengthening food demand,
investment in Indian agriculture and agribusiness has remained
sluggish, and growth in farm output has slowed, since the early
1990s. The policy environment has grown more investor friendly
since the late 1990s and private investment appears to be responding,
but significant barriers remain and the pace of future reforms
remains uncertain.
Indian Wheat
and Rice Sector Policies and the Implications of Reform (May 2007).
The economic environment for India's food grain sector
has changed significantly since the Green Revolution of the 1960s
and 1970s. Future developments will be shaped by changes
in productivity and consumer demand, but primarily by how policies
adapt to the new environment. Some of these changes, such as
reducing price supports and the scope of government food grain
operations, would likely curtail government costs, benefit consumers,
allow for a larger private sector role in the domestic market,
and increase reliance on international trade.
The Role
of Policy and Industry Structure in India's Oilseed Markets (April 2006).
Rising incomes in India are likely to lead to continued
strong growth in that country's demand for oils and oil
meals. Extensive policy intervention affects Indian oilseed production,
trade, and processing. Current high tariffs on oilseeds and oil
are of little benefit to Indian producers while imposing high
costs on consumers. Policy reform, particularly liberalization
of oilseed imports, could improve producer and consumer welfare
and have a significant impact on trade.
Prospects for India's
Emerging Apple Market (January 2006). Strong economic growth is projected
to lead to continued expansion of Indian apple demand, but
the high
cost of domestic and imported apples compared with other Indian
fruit is likely to limit consumption to higher income consumers.
High internal marketing margins—or returns to traders over
and above measured costs—are a major contributor to high
retail apple prices.
Growth Prospects for
India's Cotton and Textile Industries (June 2005). Indian cotton use is
expanding due to rising demand in India and increased textile and
apparel exports following the removal of Multifiber Arrangement
quotas. Reforms to policies that discriminate against large scale
manufacturing and use of manmade fibers should boost export competitiveness
and demand growth. Raw cotton imports have increased recently, with
future growth dependent on how much progress is made in improving
domestic cotton yields and quality.
The
World Bids Farewell to the Multifiber Arrangement (MFA) (February 2006).
This Amber Waves article describes the genesis and consequences
of the MFA, and the impacts of its removal. China, India, and
Pakistan are the cotton-textile-exporting countries expected
to benefit most from the MFA’s demise. However, global
cotton use is largely being driven by other factors, such as
income growth. For the full report, see The
Forces Shaping World Cotton Consumption After the Multifiber
Arrangement (April 2005).
Indian
Agriculture: Status and Reform Potential 2004 (August 2004). Most of India's
extensive policy interventions in agricultural markets were introduced
in response to conditions prior to independence in 1947, as well
as the food crisis of the mid-1960s. Agricultural policies are now
resulting in burdensome subsidies, weak investment, and sluggish
growth in the sector. Recent election results revealed significant
dissatisfaction with the performance of the rural and farm sector,
which may give impetus to reforms that develop infrastructure and
remove regulatory constraints to private investment in agricultural
technology and markets.
The
Elephant Is Jogging: New Pressures for Agricultural Reform in India (February 2004).
India's economy and agricultural sector have made remarkable progress
in the 57 years since independence in 1947. Now, however, the agricultural
sector has outgrown the policies that contributed to past success,
as strengthening consumer demand, rising subsidies, and low agribusiness
investment create pressure for policy reform.
India's Poultry Sector: Development
and Prospects (February 2004). Poultry meat is the fastest growing component
of global meat demand, and India, the world's second largest developing
country, is experiencing rapid growth in its poultry sector. In
India, poultry sector growth is being driven by rising incomes and
a rapidly expanding middle class, together with competitively priced
domestic feed supplies and the emergence of vertically integrated
poultry producers.
India's Edible Oil
Sector: Imports Fill Rising Demand (November 2003). India is the world's leading
importer of edible oils and is likely to remain an important source
of global import demand for the foreseeable future. Income and population
growth, trade policy reforms, and domestic agricultural policies
affecting the productivity of India's oilseed farmers and processing
sector have contributed to increased consumption and import demand.
India's Pulse Sector:
Results of Field Research (May 2003). India has the world's largest pulse
sector, but despite liberal import policies, imports have remained
a small share of supplies and per capita consumption has declined.
This report describes the market for crops such as chickpeas and
lentils in that country and assesses the United States' competitive
position as a supplier.
India’s Consumer and
Producer Price Policies: Implications for Food Security (February 2003). Rising
retail grain prices (due to higher farm support prices) are the
principal constraint to improving access to food by the poor, who
spend roughly 80 percent of their income on food. Improving marketing
efficiency and farm yields would allow retail food prices to fall
without adversely affecting farmers.
India Relaxes
Restraints on Agricultural Imports (November 2000). Following an agreement negotiated
under the World Trade Organization, India will replace its quantitative
import restrictions with a system of tariffs and tariff-rate quotas
by early 2001, providing trade access to all its commodity markets,
including agricultural markets.
Trade Liberalization and
the South Asian Economies: Adjusting to the Challenges of
Globalization
(December 1999). South
Asian countries have made significant strides in the past two decades
in reforming economic policy, removing trade restrictions, and implementing
Uruguay Round Agreement commitments, but further reform is needed
to attain food security and improve economic growth in the region.
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