ISLAMABAD: A report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations (UN) has found that the consumption of pulses has declined from 15 kg per person a year to around 7 kg a year, a local media outlet reported on Sunday.
The data was presented in a report titled ‘State of Food and Agriculture in Asia and the Pacific Region’ that analysed pulse consumption in several South Asia countries between 1961 and 2013.
Developing countries move away from relatively inexpensive vegetable proteins to expensive animal proteins, the report said, with South Asian states neatly corresponding to the rule. India also experienced significant decline in pulse consumption from 22 kg to 15 kg during the same period.
The report found that calorie consumption in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka was below what would be expected given the average per capital household expenditure.
Despite the significant decline in pulse consumption, South Asia remains its largest consumer in the world.