Analysing Public Food Procurement Effectiveness in India and Implications for Food Security
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12705257 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sanchayan Nath (0000-0002-9944-1249, XLRI Xavier School of Management Delhi‐NCR Campus Untloda India, corresponding author), Nakul Parameswar (0000-0001-7560-0228, Department of Entrepreneurship and Management Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad Kandi India), Rakesh Arrawatia (0000-0003-3233-901X, Institute of Rural Management Anand Anand India), Debasmita Bej (Institute of Rural Management Anand Anand India) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2026-01-28 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Public Affairs (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1472-3891 • E-ISSN: 1479-1854 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1002/pa.70112 |
| OpenAlex | W7125931729 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 33 |
There appears to be limited theoretical understanding of the mechanisms through which process, performance and agency‐related variables interact to influence procurement effectiveness in India. In addition, limited research exists on how farmer‐producers perceive the role of such factors in the public procurement of food and whether bottom‐up scenario‐based planning can suggest measures for increasing procurement effectiveness. Therefore, using an innovative framework linking process, performance and agency‐related variables to procurement fidelity (a measure of procurement effectiveness), the research question that this article answers is: How do process, agency and performance‐related variables influence the effectiveness of public food procurement in India? This question was answered by analysing two crucial cases of Indian procurement agencies using data collected via scenario‐based focus group discussions with 86 farmer‐producers across five Indian states. The key theoretical takeaways of this article are that three types of malfeasant behaviour (rent‐seeking, discretion, collusion) among a wide range of intermediaries and procurement officials lead to process variation in food procurement. Process variation leads to performance variation, which in turn affects procurement effectiveness. This article argues that ineffective public food procurement affects food security by analysing the links between food procurement and four dimensions of food security (availability, access, utilisation and stability). A key empirical takeaway is that farmer‐producers advocate bottom‐up planning as an antidote for increased food procurement effectiveness and food security in the country
Agency (philosophy · Food industry · Food safety · Food security · Intermediary · Key (lock · Procurement · Agricultural Innovations and Practices · Genetically Modified Organisms Research · Public Procurement and Policy
The Politics of Government Decision-Making
The Welfare Costs of Tariffs, Monopolies, and Theft
A review of research on fidelity of implementation
Focus Groups as Qualitative Research
Food Security in India
Participatory scenario planning and climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability research in the Arctic
Conceptualizing food systems for global environmental change research
Challenges to scenario-guided adaptive action on food security under climate change
Institutional Legitimacy, Cross-Border Trade and Institutional Voids
Trade-offs or synergies? Hybridity and sustainable performance of dairy cooperatives in India
The impact of decision-making on conflict
Multi-scale narratives from an IA perspective
Multi-scale narratives from an IA perspective
From Planning to Implementation
Assessing Determinants of Bureaucratic Discretion
Food Procurement in Post-neoliberal Countries
The Norm of Reciprocity
Food Sovereignty and Fome Zero
| Highly cited | No |
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