The Raghavan Report Water footprint – Asia’s unique challenges and opportunities by Raghavan (‘Ragha’) Sampathkumar From the Yangtze to the Brahmaputra, through to the mighty Mekong, Asia has some of the biggest river ecosystems in the world. These rivers are the foundation of such an exceedingly varied biodiversity in the world, approximately 36 biodiversity hotspots, to be precise. A report from the United Nations says, “around 200 million people in the Asia-Pacific region directly depend on the forest for their non-timber forest products, medicine, food, fuel as well as other subsistence needs. Biodiversity and ecosystem services contributed to rapid economic growth from 1990 to 2010, benefiting its more than 4.5 billion people.” Yet, despite this, the region also is the largest with regards to population. It is one of the youngest also, which is leading to increase in food demand, particularly in favour of protein, and other high-value food products. All these demanding sidefactors place enormous pressure on the supply-side of the food industry. One example of this is palm oil, sourced from Malaysia and Indonesia. This product is often criticised for its ecological footprint and faces enormous challenges from the importing markets on account of environmental sustainability criteria. Water footprints are one of the most important parameters, not just for palm oil, but for all crops that are grown and exported from Asia, including rice and wheat. There are further challenges across three “Ps” viz, policies such as pricing; perception towards water and, of course, political concerns also playing a major role in the issue. India also suffers from similar issues to Asia, yet they have rectified these issues somewhat, to ensure a profitable, efficient mode of production. India’s agricultural segment alone consumes approximately 80 percent of the country’s water use. But, in most of the provinces it is free, leading to rampant indiscriminate use. Pricing policies must therefore be tweaked to adjust and set a
minimal pricing for water, along with measures such as microirrigation, crop diversification, crop rotation, using varieties with improved agronomic traits can improve overall WUE. Rice requires 900 - 2500 mm of water, whilst sugarcane needs 1500 – 2500 mm respectively for a cropping cycle. Rice alone consumes nearly a quarter of all water used in the country. But sadly, India’s food policies till date are unfavourable for crop diversification to make farmers grow pulses or corn which need only half the water quantity of rice, and a quarter of sugar canes water requirement. Direct seeding in rice and techniques like System of Rice Intensification (SRI) can result in significant reduction in water footprint of Indian rice crop, which remains a staggering 2020 m3 against the global average of 1325 m3. Hence, there must be a balanced and holistic approach that would consider imminent need for water pricing policy; focus on nutritional security than clinging onto the cereal-based food policies for political or other considerations; and importantly, an enabling environment where markets and regulations synergise to address growing water stress. Countries such as Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand are actively pursuing advanced technological solutions, especially geo-spatial, to conserve water through multiple strategies. There are understandably important concerns about practical utility and arguments concerning the affordability of these technologies in Asia where small and marginal farmers dominate, possessing close to 450 million small holdings. These technologies can also be adopted beyond plantations in other small-holders dominated crop sectors, such as vegetables. Unlike in the West, small and marginal farmers of the developing countries certainly need greater support through impactful extension methods, favourable credit facilities and support, such as subsidies, for investing in tools that would help achieve optimum water usage. This requires a strong political will for reforms that is supported by holistic and integrated approaches towards food, water and environmental policies while keeping the region’s nutritional security as the top most priority.
Raghavan Sampathkumar is a food and agribusiness leader with a 360 degree understanding of the complex Geo Political, Environmental, Socio Economic, Techno - Commercial and Cultural perspectives of Agri Food value chain. He worked in various subsectors including agro inputs, international trade, biotech, and animal nutrition across Asia-Pacific and currently he is with Compound Livestock Feed Manufactures Association (CLFMA) of India as its Executive Director. He regularly writes for international publications on agri-food trends, food security and sustainability themes. Also, he pens his poems and thoughts in his personal blog - www.asmalltownkid.wordpress.com. 20 | September 2018 - Milling and Grain