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Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on agricultural production, livelihoods, and food security in India: baseline results of a phone survey

Author

Listed:
  • Lindsay M. Jaacks

    (The University of Edinburgh
    Harvard University
    Public Health Foundation of India)

  • Divya Veluguri

    (The University of Edinburgh
    Harvard University)

  • Rajesh Serupally

    (Centre for Chronic Disease Control)

  • Aditi Roy

    (Public Health Foundation of India)

  • Poornima Prabhakaran

    (Public Health Foundation of India)

  • GV Ramanjaneyulu

    (Centre for Sustainable Agriculture)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on agricultural production, livelihoods, food security, and dietary diversity in India. Phone interview surveys were conducted by trained enumerators across 12 states and 200 districts in India from 3 to 15 May 2020. A total of 1437 farmers completed the survey (94% male; 28% 30–39 years old; 38% with secondary schooling). About one in ten farmers (11%) did not harvest in the past month with primary reasons cited being unfavorable weather (37%) and lockdown-related reasons (24%). A total of 63% of farmers harvested in the past month (primarily wheat and vegetables), but only 44% had sold their crop; 12% were still trying to sell their crop, and 39% had stored their crop, with more than half (55%) reporting lockdown-related issues as the reason for storing. Seventy-nine percent of households with wage-workers witnessed a decline in wages in the past month and 49% of households with incomes from livestock witnessed a decline. Landless farmers were about 10 times more likely to skip a meal as compared to large farmers (18% versus 2%), but a majority reported receiving extra food rations from the government. Nearly all farmers reported consuming staple grains daily in the past week (97%), 63% consumed dairy daily, 40% vegetables daily, 26% pulses daily, and 7% fruit daily. These values are much lower than reported previously for farmers in India around this time of year before COVID-19: 94–95% dairy daily, 57–58% pulses daily, 64–65% vegetables daily, and 42–43% fruit daily. In conclusion, we found that the COVID-19 lockdown in India has primarily impacted farmers’ ability to sell their crops and livestock products and decreased daily wages and dietary diversity.

Suggested Citation

  • Lindsay M. Jaacks & Divya Veluguri & Rajesh Serupally & Aditi Roy & Poornima Prabhakaran & GV Ramanjaneyulu, 2021. "Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on agricultural production, livelihoods, and food security in India: baseline results of a phone survey," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 13(5), pages 1323-1339, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ssefpa:v:13:y:2021:i:5:d:10.1007_s12571-021-01164-w
    DOI: 10.1007/s12571-021-01164-w
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    6. Saripalle, Madhuri & Subramanian, Vijaya C., 2022. "Production, Prices and Supply Chain disruption among farmers during Covid-19: Empirical Evidence from India," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322395, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    7. Ganchimeg Gombodorj & Károly Pető, 2022. "What Type of Households in Mongolia Are Most Hit by COVID-19?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-20, March.
    8. T. Ramanathan & T. Veerapandi & P. Palanikumar, 2023. "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Indian Agriculture," Shanlax International Journal of Economics, Shanlax Journals, vol. 12(1), pages 110-113, December.
    9. Assem Abu Hatab & Lena Krautscheid & Mohamed Elsayied & Franklin Amuakwa-Mensah, 2024. "COVID-19 risk perception and food security in the MENA region: evidence from a multi-wave household survey," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 16(4), pages 989-1008, August.
    10. Verena Preusse & Manuel Santos Silva & Linda Steinhübel & Meike Wollni, 2024. "Covid‐19 and agricultural labor supply: Evidence from the rural–urban interface of an Indian mega‐city," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(2), pages 391-415, April.
    11. Lotanna E Emediegwu & Obianuju O Nnadozie, 2023. "On the effects of COVID-19 on food prices in India: a time-varying approach," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 50(2), pages 232-249.
    12. Muhammad Khayyam & Fatima Daud Kamal & Muhammad Nouman & Arjumand Nizami & Jawad Ali & Muhammad Asad Salim, 2023. "Agricultural Markets, Cropping Patterns, and Consumption Patterns: The Moderating Effect of COVID-19 on Mountainous Communities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-17, October.
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    14. Serge Savary & Stephen Waddington & Sonia Akter & Conny J. M. Almekinders & Jody Harris & Lise Korsten & Reimund P. Rötter & Goedele den Broeck, 2022. "Revisiting food security in 2021: an overview of the past year," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(1), pages 1-7, February.
    15. Nitya Mittal & Janina Isabel Steinert & Sebastian Vollmer, 2023. "COVID-19 pandemic, losses of livelihoods and uneven recovery in Pune, India," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-10, December.

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