India palm oil output to triple in 6 years as farmers plant more, says Agrovet exec
By Rajendra Jadhav
MUMBAI, Sept 20 (Reuters) -India's palm oil production is likely to triple in six years as the area under oil palm plantations increases and as plantations become mature for harvesting, a senior industry official said on Friday.
The world's biggest edible oil importer relies on Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand for palm oil supplies. An increase in production will help India slash edible oil imports that account for nearly two-thirds of its total consumption.
India's palm oil production is likely to jump to 1.2 to 1.5 million metric tons by 2030-31 from the current 400,000 tons, as farmers have been expanding the area, said Sougata Niyogi, chief executive officer of the oil palm plantation division at India's biggest palm oil producer, Godrej Agrovet Ltd GODE.NS.
Oil palm trees start yielding fruit 3-4 years after planting, with yields increasing significantly at around 6 years.
The oil palm area has been rising at a rapid pace since New Delhi started providing incentives to farmers from 2021 to curb vegetable oil imports, which cost it $15 billion in the last fiscal year.
The area under oil palm cultivation increased to 375,000 hectares (926,600 acres) by last year, and an additional 80,000 to 100,000 hectares is likely to be added this year, Niyogi told Reuters on the sidelines of the Globoil India conference.
"Government policies are helping farmers expand their planting areas. The new plantations should be ready for harvest by 2030-31, and that's when we'll see a big jump in production," he said.
India currently imports around 16 million tons of vegetable oils per annum, including 9 to 10 million tons of palm oil, mainly from Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.
Godrej Agrovet expects its palm oil production to double to 250,000 tons by 2030-31, Niyogi said.
Two years ago, there was a shortage of sprouts, which India imports to produce seedlings, but now enough sprouts are available to accelerate oil palm planting, he said.
Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
