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Sunday, Sep 28, 2008
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Oilseeds & Edible Oil Industry & Economy - Exports & Imports ‘India to depend on edible oil imports for 3-4 yrs’
Though the dependency on imports may decrease in the short-term, the country will have to import 4-4.5 mt of vegetable oil annually Our Bureau Mumbai, Sept. 27 India will be dependent on imports of edible oil for the next three to four years and will contend with price volatility in the international markets, said Mr T. Nand Kumar, Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation. Speaking at the 12th International Conference and Exhibition on Vegetable Oil, Mr Nand Kumar, said though the dependency on vegetable oil imports may decrease in the short-term, the country would have to import 4-4.5 million tonnes (mt) annually. Demand was increasing 4 per cent annually and had touched 13 mt this year. India imported 5 mt till August, though it could come down marginally to 4.5 mt on the back of a bumper kharif crop. Stating that the availability of arable land would remain more or less constant, he said the challenge was to transfer technology to the fields for increasing yields. The Government has intentionally increased the minimum support prices for most agriculture commodities to encourage farmers to cultivate food crops. “It is a tightrope walk when it comes to striking a balance between consumer interest and farmer aspiration,” he said. Little impactAssuring that the ban on soya oil futures would be lifted by November-end, the Forward Markets Commission Chairman, Mr B.C. Khatua, said barring the stock market, the financial crisis in the US has had little impact on India. However, if the trouble in the US persists for a longer period India might face some difficulty. Advising farmers to grow more food crops and shift from sugarcane, Mr Khatua said, “Sugarcane is a lazy crop. To cultivate sugarcane on a hectare 25 million litres of water was needed. On the other hand, with the same quantity water, food crops can be grown in five hectares.” Requesting the Government to revisit the duty on import on edible oils, Mr Ashok Sethia, President, Solvent Extractors’ Association of India, said the industry was passing through a crisis for the last two months following the crash in international and domestic markets. It had come to a near standstill after the crude palm oil dropped by over $550 a tonne in last two months to $665 a tonne from a high of $1,220, while RBD (refined, bleached and deodorised) palmolein declined from $1,370 a tonne to $770 a tonne and sunflower oil from $1,970 to $1,140 a tonne (cost, insurance and freight) in two months. Veg oil imports turn cheaper as prices fall ‘Govt should stop vegetable oil imports’ More Stories on : Oilseeds & Edible Oil | Exports & Imports
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