Outlook Planet Desk
The PDS provides subsidised food to more than 800 million Indians. Under the programme, eligible households are entitled to purchase 5 kilogrammes of rice, wheat, or coarse grains per person each month from fair-priced shops located throughout the...
Outlook Planet Desk
As climate change forces disruptive changes in farming cycles and malnutrition emerges as an even bigger crisis, these ancient super grains could become increasingly significant in the future, says Bill Gates in a recent blog
Outlook Planet Desk
In a significant win for food security and nutrition, the Food and Agriculture Organisation declared millets a "global superfood" at the closing ceremony of the International Year of Millets 2023
Outlook Planet Desk
China has invited Raimati Ghiuria, popularly known as Odisha’s Millet Queen, to share her knowledge and experience of the super grain
Millet Mantra To Address Malnutrition And Climate Change
At the behest of India, the United Nations declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets. Earlier, India declared 2018 as the National Year for Millets. Apart from the Government of India, various State Governments, too, have launched their respective millet missions. Companies like Britannia, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Nestle and Tata Soulfull, as well as thousands of start-ups and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), too, are focusing more on millets.
The reasons are compelling. One of the first crops to be domesticated in India, millets are touted as the next super food owing to their high nutritional content of proteins, carbohydrates, dietary fibre and amino acids. Besides, millets are climate resilient for their low carbon and water footprint and can grow on poor soils with little inputs and withstand high temperatures. Millets have the potential to help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). ...
According to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), millets are small seeded annual grasses that are grown as grain crops, primarily on marginal land in dry areas of temperate, sub-tropical and tropical regions. Grown in more than 100 countries, millets are traditional foods of more than half a billion people. India accounts for more than 20 per cent of the global millet production today and it is set to increase in the future.
The Government’s and the private sector’s focus on millets to address the twin challenges of malnutrition and climate change sits well with the Outlook Group’s much acclaimed and multi-year initiative championing the cause of Poshan under the banner of recently relaunched Outlook Planet website. We are also committing ourselves to create an enabling ecosystem through our editorial initiative to accelerate India’s journey to eradicate malnutrition and catalyse climate action while supporting income generation of marginal farmers and entrepreneurs. Given the scale and severity of challenges, we invite all like-minded stakeholders to join hands.
– Rajiv Tikoo is Consulting Editor - Sustainability,
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Outlook Group
The government reports a millet surge as 22 MSMEs join in, attracted by the Production-Linked Incentive for millet-based products
Lenovo develops a tech-based prototype model for millet revival and establish market linkages benefiting farming communities in Kanthalloor
Celebrating International Millets Year 2023, Union Minister Arjun Munda inaugurates a festival promoting millets, aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision for sustainable agriculture and nutritional security
The acclaimed play Pruthvi Che Shetkari by theatre director Darshan Mahajan takes centre stage, garnering praise from top officials and recognition from the UN Food and Agriculture Department
Breaking ground in nutrition, ICAR-IIMR pioneers an innovative method to make millets resemble rice, offering a wholesome alternative for health-conscious individuals
A symphony of flavours and nutrition hits the sweet spot in Thanjavur's culinary landscape
With climate change now a permanent reality, it is imperative to recalibrate the approach towards understanding and nurturing this vital crop for dryland communities, according to ICRISAT Director General Jacqueline Hughes