Food Supply Chains and their Influence on Resurgence in Institutions of Commons

Abstract

"Agriculture, fisheries and forestry are three key sub- sectors of agrarian economy, which provide us with food and are linked to market economy. Commons are interlinked to the production and distribution of food and food products - both in terms of production resource base and in distribution resource base. Food production by farmers, fishermen and tribal communities using land, water and forests hinge upon linkages built with supply chain management processes in order to link to the value addition and consumer markets. Food supply chains are pivotal in any economy and they impact and influence the hunger; poverty alleviation measures; remunerative prices and generation of productive employment. A critical assessment of supply chains that are operational in a country like India would give an understanding of issues involved, alternatives and opportunities available to develop alternative mechanisms and improve the efficiencies of supply chains; enhance the role of commons and support building institutions that are proactive, economically viable and harness technological tools.

"Food supply chains depend on - at the production level - land; forests and water (lakes, rivers and oceans), which have an increasing proportion of common property in that order. Each of these is controlled through state controls that maneuver production systems and output levels. Managing commons as production base is one area where communities waged struggles and have tried to evolve institutional mechanisms. Several studies have attempted bringing out into the fore, the issues, complexities and inter-relations of these with larger societal issues. Shah (1995), Singh and Ballabh (1996) and Vandana Shiva (1997, 2001) highlighted these in their works and have also tried to discuss the evolution of institutions in managing the commons. However, addressing the issues of managing them as means of logistics, links for supply chain management and tools to deploy cost and service efficiency measures has not yet received the attention and treatment that has increasingly become imperative."