India’s Edible Oil Requirements
Context:
• India has contracted 45,000 tons of Russian sunflower oil at a record-high price for shipments in April as edible oil prices in the local market surged after supplies from rival Ukraine stopped, five industry officials.
Why shortage in supplies?
• As vessel loading is not possible in Ukraine, buyers are trying to secure supplies from Russia.
• Indonesia has also decided in limiting its supply of palm oil and also low soya bean crop in South America has resulted in the shortages.
What are the initiatives that India has taken up?
National Edible Oil Mission-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) :
• The oil palm cultivators will be encouraged financially to increase the production of oil palm.
• The scheme also emphasises on the North East India and Andaman region for the production of oil palm because of its conducive weather conditions to cultivate oil palm.
• This will involve raising the area under oil palm cultivation to 10 lakh hectares by 2025-26 and 16.7 lakh hectares by 2029-30.
• It is expected to incentivise production of palm oil to reduce dependence on imports and help farmers cash in on the huge market.
• India is the largest consumer of vegetable oil in the world. Of this, palm oil imports are almost 55% of its total vegetable oil imports.
Source: THE HINDU