Food Corporation at the crossroads as grain oversupply meets flat demand

Govt's food storekeeper is procuring twice the quantity national welfare schemes need. It is aware of the problem, and may soon find newer ways to dispose available stocks

The agency that runs the world's largest food welfare programme is facing a problem that stands testimony to its size. Expanding its procurement every year, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) has been caught in a situation in which it has lifted excess food that it will find difficult to put it to use, once the requirement of India’s poor has been met.

Last year (2020-21), the FCI and state agencies procured more than 132 million tonnes (mt) of cereals from Indian farmers at the minimum support price (MSP), consisting of 89 mt rice and 43 mt wheat. This was