Pathways And Strategies For Accelerating Growth In Edible Oils : Report Of NITI AAyog
A report titled “Pathways and Strategies for Accelerating Growth in Edible Oils towards Goal of Atmanirbharta” was released by NITI Aayog.
- The report analyses the current edible oil sector, outlines its future potential, and provides a detailed roadmap to address challenges, aiming to close the demand-supply gap and achieve self-sufficiency.
Key Highlights of the Report:
- Oilseed Production and Area: Nine major oilseed crops (groundnut, rapeseed-mustard, soybean, sunflower, sesame, safflower, niger seed, castor and linseed) cover 14.3% of the gross cropped area, contributing 12-13% to dietary energy and about 8% to agricultural exports.
- Soybean leads with 34% of total oilseed production, followed by rapeseed-mustard (31%) and groundnut (27%).
- Regional Production Distribution: Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh are the top producers, each contributing about 21.42% of national production.
- Gujarat (17.24%) and Maharashtra (15.83%) also play major roles.
- Rising Consumption and Import Dependence: Per capita consumption (over the last decade) of edible oil has surged to 19.7 kg/year.
- Domestic production meets only 40-45% of the demand,overall consumption surged, leading to increased imports from 1.47 MT (million tonne) in 1986-87 to 16.5 MT in 2022-23, raising the import dependency ratio to 57%.
- Palm oil dominates these imports, accounting for 59%, followed by soybean (23%) and sunflower (16%).
- Growth Trends: From 1980-81 to 2022-23, oilseed area, production, and yield grew at rates of 0.90%, 2.84%, and 1.91%, respectively.
- In the recent decade, production and yield growth rates improved to 2.12% and 1.53%. The area under oilseeds increased in all decades except 1991-2000.
- The report projects that production of the nine major oilseeds will rise to 43 MT by 2030 and 55 MT by 2047, up from 37.96 MT in 2021-22 under the Business as Usual (BAU) scenario.
