Prices of many edible oils including mustard, soybean, groundnut increased
In the 1980s, sunflowers in Haryana, Punjab and groundnut in Bareilly, Sitapur, Lakhimpur Kheri and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh were well grown. In South India also, there used to be heavy arrival in the sunflower markets from one or the other southern state every other month, which has now closed.
Mustard, soybean, groundnut and CPO (Mustard), soybean (Soybean), groundnut (Groundnut) and CPO (Oilseeds Markets) across the country last week due to higher prices of imported oils amid a boom in foreign markets. Prices of almost all oilseeds including CPO closed showing improvement. Traders said India imports around 60 per cent of its edible oil requirements. Sunflower oil is not arriving in the mandis for the past one and a half months amid rising geopolitical tensions between Ukraine and Russia. The sunflower oil which is coming in small quantities is being imported from Argentina.
Groundnut and mustard oil is cheaper than sunflower
It is noteworthy that Ukraine and Russia supply about 80 percent of the global requirement of sunflower oil. The next sowing of sunflower is expected to be affected due to the protracted war that broke out between these two countries. Sources said that due to the Russo-Ukraine war, the arrival of sunflower oil is very less and this oil is being supplied from Argentina. The price of sunflower oil in Argentina has risen to $2,300 per tonne, of which refined oil costs around Rs 200 a kg in the country. Compared to this price, groundnut oil is cheaper by about Rs 40 per kg. Hence there has been an increase in the consumption of mustard as well as groundnut as an alternative to sunflower. This is the main reason for the correction in mustard and groundnut oil-oilseeds prices. Due to increase in demand due to cheaper domestic oil than imported oil, the price of oil-oilseeds has improved.
Sunflower and groundnut were cultivated here
Sources said that in the 1980s, sunflower in Haryana, Punjab and groundnut in Bareilly, Sitapur, Lakhimpur Kheri and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh used to grow well. In South India also, there used to be heavy arrival in the sunflower markets from one or the other southern state every other month, which has now closed. When groundnut crop was affected in Gujarat due to drought of 1987, groundnut production in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu helped to overcome the shortage of groundnut. The climate of South India is considered suitable for sunflower cultivation. Therefore, attention should be paid to increase sunflower and groundnut cultivation again in these traditional oilseed growing locations.
Make Stock Hafed and Nafed
Sources said that on behalf of the government, cooperative institutions – Hafed and Nafed – should pay attention to buy mustard at market price and make stock of it, which can be helpful for us in difficult times. When the prices of imported oils are expensive, it is difficult to get mustard at the minimum support price (MSP). Providing edible oil to the public through the Public Distribution System (PDS) may prove to be a better move than adopting tariff reduction routes to meet the government’s objective of supporting the poor.
Increased production of oilseeds
Sources said that in the last almost 30 years, the measures to reduce the fee variation have so far failed to give the expected results. A cheap and long-term way to avoid the cycle of boom and fall is to increase oilseed production by paying remunerative prices to the farmers.
Mustard seed price
Sources said that due to increase in demand, the price of mustard seeds improved by Rs 225 to Rs 7,725-7,750 per quintal last week from its previous weekend. Mustard Dadri oil improved by Rs 1,075 to close at Rs 16,300 a quintal. Mustard Pakki Ghani and Kachchi Ghani oil also closed with a substantial correction.
Soybean grain price
Sources said soyabean grains and soyabean loose prices edged up by Rs 275 each to Rs 7,775-7,825 and Rs 7,475-7,575 per quintal, respectively, amid gains in overseas markets. Soybean oil prices also improved during the week under review. Soyabean Delhi, Indore and Soyabean Degum prices closed at Rs 17,150, Rs 16,810 and Rs 15,720 per quintal, showing a correction of Rs 750, Rs 810 and Rs 520, respectively.
Price of peanuts
Groundnut grain prices improved by Rs 425 to Rs 6,850-6,945 per quintal in the week under review, while groundnut oil Gujarat and groundnut Solvent improved by Rs 1,220 and Rs 175 respectively to Rs 16,020 per quintal and Rs 2,645-2,835 respectively. Closed at Rs.
Palm oil price
Crude palm oil (CPO) prices rose by Rs 1,050 to close at Rs 15,150 a quintal during the weekend under review. The price of Palmolein Delhi also improved by Rs 600 to Rs 16,700 and Palmolein Kandla improved by Rs 650 to close at Rs 15,450 per quintal. Cottonseed oil also closed at Rs 15,350 per quintal showing an improvement of Rs 550.
