Future in Food Industry

Prof. ANIL JAIN
I’ve given a little thought on the economy of the world. The economy of most of the countries is based on industry. It so happens that when the utilization of some product reaches its saturation point then the industry comes at the verge of collapsing which causes economic recession.
In the eighties television was introduced. The demand for television was so vast that it created a huge market. In a couple of decades it reached its culmination. Later in the nineties computers came into existence. It was such a great invention that it helped to further the world economy. Again most of its users acquired computers and its demand lessened. After that were introduced mobiles. The advent of computers and the internet revolutionized the globe and it played a vital role to boost the world economy for the next twenty years. It proved to be a boon to the world. Such a state of affairs shaped a vast market in the world because there were billions of consumers for that and it created millions of jobs too. Now we have laptops in every lap, mobiles in both hands and TVs in every home. Demand for all that has almost ended. That is why the news of economic depression makes headlines. So it may be concluded that until and unless some new inventions are introduced in the market there seems no possibility of any reform in the world economy in near future. For the boom in the economy there must be a demand for something.
Whole of the economy is based on two basic fundamentals. What I studied from the very beginning during my school days when economics was introduced to me that there are two basics of economics- that is, demand and supply. In earlier times there was a lot of demand for almost everything and to supply that demand the world’s economy remained balanced.
The reason is that in earlier years the production was so slow that the need for every item continued to exist but today the things are different. Today many machines are there and the production is so speedy that soon the marketplaces are filled with the produce. The production has increased at such a pace that shops are overflowing with goods. Go to any shop and mall you will find them crammed with a variety of articles and that too in bulk. Let’s take an example of garments. Thousands and lakhs of outfits are there for our choice. I wonder how many of them are sold.
One more factor that any common spectator can understand is that there is loss of demand or that the consumers are reluctant. Anyone who keeps an eye on market affairs may come to the conclusion that the reason behind the present recession is not that people do not have money. Each and everyone has enough money. They have a lot of purchasing power too but they do not need anything because they have almost everything for the smooth running of day to day life. So the reason behind the present day depression is the loss of demand.
Many developed countries suffer with the ailment of recession off and on even on trivial grounds because their economy is industry based. Once the demand for some particular item decreases the country wavers and starts lamenting over its economy. But India always comes out of this disease safe and sound.
If we go a little deeper into it we can understand that India had a considerate legacy which has come down to us from our ancestors. They seemed quite aware to take agriculture as their profession and preferred to invest in gold. We all know that these two are the fundamentals of the economy of any country. We may not have luxury items but our barns are filled with food items. That is why India never falters. The demand of anything may lessen but never for food items for the obvious reasons.
India also wants to come at par with developed countries and promote industries but it should concentrate on the food industry. It is here the seeds of India’s prosperity lies. Crop growing can prosper the country and countrymen who are mostly farmers. Indians ‘greed’ for gold may also be a boon because even in the modern economic system gold will never lose its sheen. Thus, so long as the architects of India keep the agro economy in mind our country can always be hopeful about our future.
(Writer is a Prof. Deptt. of English Govt. PG College, DAMOH MP. Views are personal. can be contacted [email protected])