Slow monsoon progress causing delay in sowing of oilseeds: SEA

The slow progress of monsoon is causing a delay in the sowing of oilseeds in the ongoing Kharif season, industry body SEA said while expressing a concern that likely El Nino condition might impact production. Area sown to oilseeds remained lower at 4.1 lakh hectares till last week as against 4.8 lakh hectares in the year-ago period of the 2023-23 kharif season, it said.

"The onset of monsoon in Kerala is delayed by a week and also the slow advancement of monsoon is leading to a delay in sowing in most of the states,"Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA) Ajay Jhunjhunwala said in a letter written to members. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast near normal monsoon. "However, El Nino is not ruled out completely and may spoil the chances of normal monsoon, which may impact kharif crop and domestic availability of vegetable oils in next oil year 2023-24," he observed.

Stressing the need to ensure minimum support price (MSP) to the farmers, Jhunjhunwala said SEA welcomes the move to support farmers with MSP, but the government must defend MSP. Currently, rapeseed is quoted at Rs 5,100 per quintal against an MSP of Rs 5,450 per quintal. In Haryana, sunflower seed price is ruling below MSP of Rs 6,400 per quintal, sparking farmer protests, he said. Mustard farmers are discouraged because at the time of sowing (in October 2022) prices were quoted Rs 7,000-7,500 per quintal but currently, farmers are receiving Rs 4,700-4,800 per quintal.

"This may impact into lower acreage under soybean this kharif and mustard in rabi season and overall production of oilseeds," he added. India is dependent on imports of vegetable oils. The country imported 91.68 lakh tonne in the first seven months of this year till May, up by 18 per cent from 77.68 lakh tonne in the previous year, as per the SEA data.