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India’s deficit in edible oils is expected to widen by 73.5 per cent by 2020 to more than 81 lakh tones from the current 47.1 lakh tonnes. The situation might aggravate further if the country fails to maintain the growth in domestic vegetable oil production. Even maintaining the growth rate in production of vegetable oils won't be an easy task especially when there is increasing competition among the different crops for the cultivable land and irrigation facilities are not improving as desired.

The ASSOCHAM Report on Edible Oil further highlights that edible oil consumption in the country has increased at a brisk pace over the years with growing population and increase in per capita consumption (edible oils taken into account here are soyoil, groundnut, mustard, sunflower, safflower, sesame, coconut oil, rice bran oil and cottonseed oil). During the last two decades, the edible oil consumption in the country has increased at a CAGR of 4.25 per cent from mere 49.59 lakh tonnes in 1986-87 to 114.5 lakh tonnes in 2006-07.

Releasing the Report, Mr. D S Rawat, ASSOCHAM Secretary General said that change in eating habits with increase in income, per capita consumption of edible oils has also increased during this period at a CAGR of 2.23 per cent to 10.23 kg/yr in 2006-07 from 6.43 kg/yr in 1986-87. As the edible oil consumption in the country is expected to grow with increasing population and increasing per capita consumption, the country is likely to remain heavily dependent on imports as production growth is not sufficient to bridge this gap.

On the issue of vegetable oils supply constraints in the country, the report further says that limited scope for expansion in acreage remains one of the major hindrances for increasing production of vegetable oils. Despite some growth in yield of mustard, lack of increase in irrigation facilities is keeping acreage of mustard, a rabi crop, almost stagnant. Lower profits in oilseeds for the farmers due to poor yields as compared to other crops too contribute towards lack of expansion in oilseed acreage despite various promotional programs of the government.

The report also pointed out that yield of adopted oilseeds like soybean and sunflower is just half of the global average. Yield of traditional oil seeds is also well behind global average. The key major reasons behind the lower yield is lower irrigation coverage of oilseeds. About three fourth of total area under oilseeds is still rainfed. Allotment of relatively poor quality of land to oilseeds by farmers due to their lower profitability is also a reason behind the poor yield of oil seeds.

The focus of green revolution was mainly on the grains, which resulted in neglect of oilseeds leading to slower growth in their yields. Lack of development of high yielding varieties of oilseeds and poor distribution of existing good varieties due to poor seed sector has resulted in sluggish growth in yield of oilseeds over the period.

Limited export demand for groundnut meal due to problems of aflatoxin (which makes is less preferred in poultry feed) has proved a hindrance for the expansion of this oil seed in the country.

Further, repetitive sowing of groundnut crop under rainfed conditions in southern India has resulted in deterioration of soil and increasing pest infestation in crop, which is resulting in low and erratic production of groundnut.

The report has strongly suggested that as the oil palm has the highest potential of producing oil per unit of land, there is a dire need to increase its acreage in suitable regions of the country as the availability of cultivable land for increasing acreage of other oilseeds is limited. Government is promoting the production of oil palm in the country through Oil Palm Development Program, but so far the desired growth in palm oil production has not been achieved through this program since its inception in 1992. The report, therefore, calls for urgent need to address the problems in achieving the desired growth in palm oil production through this program.

It also recommended that there is a strong need to increase the irrigation coverage of oilseeds crop in the country to increase its acreage and yield. As most of the oilseeds are relatively low water requirement crop and promotion of these crops would also result in high water use efficiency.

Source: ASSOCHAM

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