India's Shifting Diet Could Transform Its Farms for Good

When quinoa started showing up next to jowar and millets appeared in desserts across Indian cities, it signaled something bigger than a food trend. The way Indians eat is changing fast, and for the first time in decades, farms have a real opportunity to catch up and thrive because of it.

Urban households now spend less than 35 percent of their food budget on cereals, down from over 60 percent three decades ago. Instead, families are buying more fruits, vegetables, dairy, eggs, and nutrient-rich indigenous grains.

Rural India is following the same path, just a few years behind. Spending on processed and value-added foods in villages has more than tripled in the last twenty years.

Here's the disconnect: nearly half of India's farmland still grows rice and wheat, crops that receive most government subsidies and support. Meanwhile, pulses, oilseeds, fruits and vegetables occupy less than 30 percent of cropland, and millets just 13 percent.

This mismatch costs everyone. India imports 60 percent of its cooking oil because farmers aren't growing enough oilseeds. Pulse shortages push prices up, trigger imports, then cause crashes that discourage farmers from planting them next season.

The good news? When city restaurants and grocery stores consistently stock millets and forgotten grains, farmers respond by planting more. When chefs celebrate indigenous varieties, seed systems come back to life and rural incomes grow.

The Ripple Effect

Peru saw this transformation firsthand when quinoa became popular worldwide between 2000 and 2015. Exports rose nearly tenfold, lifting farming communities across the country.

India has everything needed to create the same success story at home. The country produces 97 percent of the food it eats locally, and agriculture employs 45 percent of workers. When demand shifts, the impact spreads through entire rural economies.

Growing diverse crops helps in more ways than one. Millets use 60 percent less water than rice and wheat, crucial as climate patterns become less predictable. Pulses naturally enrich soil by fixing nitrogen, reducing the need for expensive fertilizers.

For farmers, especially those with small plots, high-value crops like fruits and vegetables can significantly boost profits. More crop variety also means less risk when one crop fails or prices drop.

The government holds the key to accelerating this change. Programs like PM-POSHAN feed 100 to 120 million children daily, sending powerful signals about which crops are needed. Expanding procurement beyond rice and wheat, offering better crop insurance, and funding research into diverse crops would help farmers make the switch with confidence.

Indian cuisine evolved over centuries in harmony with local climate, soil, and seasons. As Indian families rediscover that connection through healthier, more varied diets, farmers finally have market forces on their side to grow the crops that make environmental and economic sense.

The future of Indian farming will be shaped as much by what appears on dinner plates as by what gets planted in fields.