Cooperation among BRIC countries crucial to meet global food challenges: Pawar

Moscow, Mar 26(ANI): Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Friday said that the cooperation among Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC countries) would be crucial in addressing the issue of enhancing food production to meet the challenge of providing food to growing world population.

Addressing the international press conference on BRIC Agricultural Ministers' meeting at Moscow, Pawar said: "I feel that the initiative of BRIC countries, comprising 40 percent of world's population, to get together and deliberate upon the important issue of food security and hunger, is timely."

"On our part, we are committed to remove hunger and malnutrition from the country through various initiatives and further improve our agriculture to ensure adequate availability of food grains to all," he added.

Pawar further stressed that in the last few years several countries have faced the challenge of meeting their requirement of food due to high global prices, adverse weather conditions and stagnancy in agricultural production.

In order to realize the broad objectives agreed upon, Pawar said that a list of priority areas of cooperation were identified, which include creation of agricultural information system of BRIC countries to facilitate comprehensive analysis of food security issues leading to coordinated approach on formation of national food reserves.

It also includes development of a general strategy for ensuring access to food for the vulnerable population through exchange of experience in the area of food production and public purchase and distribution systems. (ANI)