In what is a significant move, the Union Cabinet approved on 3rd October 2024 its National Mission on Edible Oils-Oilseeds (NMEO-Oilseeds) to increase domestic oilseed production and achieve self-sufficiency in edible oils. With an allocated budget of Rs 10,103 crore, the initiative will span from 2024-25 to 2030-31 and aim to increase primary oilseed production to 69.7 million tonnes by 2030-31 from 39 million tonnes in 2022-23.
It was followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s tweet, “The Cabinet’s approval for a National Mission on Edible Oils – Oilseeds (NMEO-Oilseeds) is a major step towards Atmanirbharta. This mission will boost domestic oilseed production, support hardworking farmers and encourage sustainable agricultural practices.”
The development has massive scope for rural employment and rural development. In 2021, the National Edible Oil Mission-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) scheme, announced by the Prime Minister, set a roadmap to achieve “Atmanirbharta” or self-reliance, while meeting the food security needs of a population of 1.3 billion and empowering farmers in the country. As the world’s most popular and versatile vegetable oil, palm oil contributes to nearly 38% of our edible oil consumption. Around 9 million tonnes of palm oil is imported every year which is around 56% of the total imports of edible oil. Besides being used as a cooking oil, palm oil has edible and non-edible uses, from chocolates to cooking oil to shampoos, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, as well as biofuel.
Palm oil is also a highly productive crop, giving farmers a reliable source of income, yielding 4-5 tons of oil per hectare per year, which is higher than any other vegetable oil crop. It needs less water than sugarcane and rice while using fewer fertilisers, pesticides and energy. Globally, palm oil supplies between 35% and 40% of the world’s vegetable oil demand on just under 8.6% of the land used to produce all vegetable oils. If one were to switch to alternatives like soybean, olive, or rapeseed oil, it would lead to everyday items becoming significantly more expensive.
In terms of everyday consumption, palm oil scores highly in terms of nutritional benefits, especially in developing countries like India where it can help people with a deficiency in Vitamin A, which can affect vision, the immune system and bone health.
According to numerous studies, red palm oil is said to contain 15 times more retinol (provitamin A) equivalents than carrots, 300 times more than tomatoes, and 44 times more than leafy vegetables. Palm oil is a treasure trove of potent antioxidants known as tocols, a family of vitamin E antioxidants that come in two main varieties: the more common tocopherols and the rarer tocotrienols, which packs an extra punch. In contrast, other commonly used dietary vegetable oils, including corn, olive, peanut, sesame, soybean, and sunflower, contain tocopherols exclusively. The Dietary Guidelines for Indians-2024 issued by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), has also recognised that “tocotrienols in palm oil, for instance, reduce blood cholesterol.”
To support farmers, the government has permitted 100% FDI in plantations, alongside pledging massive financial aid in coming years, incentivising palm oil production and increasing acreage. State governments have also involved private entrepreneurs in developing oil palm seedlings, nurseries and processing mills in their regions.
The strategy to implement NMEO-OP will include increasing the production of seedlings by establishing seed gardens and nurseries of oil palm to ensure the domestic availability of seedlings. Meanwhile, increasing drip irrigation coverage, diversification from low-yielding cereal crops to oil palm, and intercropping during the gestation period of four years, will provide financial returns to farmers when there is no production.
Most of the cultivation is expected to take place in seven northeastern states. The government has also provided financial support for the establishment of oil palm processing mills, especially in northeast areas and hilly regions, for the crushing of FFBs (fresh fruit bunches) of oil palm. The government of India has also offered a price assurance to oil palm farmers for the FFBs, known as the Viability Price (VP), delinking it from international price fluctuations. Moreover, nearly 24 such mills have been established in different states, possessing a capacity of 312 MT/hrs.
While oil palm cultivation has long been associated with ecological damage, this is an outdated narrative. For instance, if we take the example of Malaysia, India’s largest exporter of palm oil, 83% of palm oil refining capacities now operate under a ‘No Deforestation, Peat and Exploitation (NDPE)’ commitment, leading to a sharp reduction in forest loss, as reported by Global Forest Watch in June 2023.
Therefore, domestic palm oil cultivation has several advantages, such as reducing India’s dependence on imports, contributing to its dietary requirements and driving rural growth.
(Anupam Barik is the former Additional Commissioner (Oilseeds) Dept. of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, GOI)