The Hindu Business Line : Guarseed arrivals begin; prices drop

Chennai, Sept. 22 Harvest of early sown guarseed crop has begun, while the new crop’s arrival has also started in markets such as Ganganagar in Rajasthan.

“Today, at least 500 bags (of 100 kg) of new guarseed crop had arrived in Ganganagar by noon. By evening, at least 1,000 bags should arrive,” said Mr Jeevan Gandhi, President of Indian Guar Gum Growers Association.

By the end of this month, arrivals are expected to be between 10,000 and 15,000 bags, he said.

With arrivals picking up, prices of guarseed are expected to decline by at Rs 50 a quintal in the short-term. On Monday, spot prices at Jodhpur ruled at Rs 1,666.90 a quintal and Rs 1,617 at Bikaner. This is against Rs 1,651 quoted on September 11.

In the futures market, November contracts today slid to Rs 1,676 a quintal from Rs 1,679 on Saturday and Rs 1,683 on September 11.

“Futures prices could drop by another Rs 50 to rule around Rs 1,630 for November contracts,” Mr Gandhi said.

On target

With the second spell of rains coming in at the right time in the growing areas, the crop could be on target to meet the initial estimate of 1.10 crore bags output.

“It should take another week or so before we can make the exact estimate of the crop, district-wise and State-wise,” he said.

Some among the trade peg the production around one crore bags but the output could be up as the area under the crop has increased 15 per cent to 34.5 lakh hectares this year.

“A correct picture on the yield and quality will be known only later this month,” Mr Gandhi said.

Thickening agent

Guar or cluster beans is a legume crop that grows best in the semi-arid regions in the country. In India, guar is grown primarily in Rajasthan, besides Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The seed is split and then made into guar gum.

Guar gum is used as a thickening agent and additives in food products such as instant soups, sauces, processed meat products, baked goods, milk and cheese products, yoghurt and ice-creams. It is also used in industrial applications such as paper and textile sectors, ore flotation, explosives manufacture and fracturing of oil and gas formations.

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Guarseed arrivals begin; prices drop