Humble guar gum India’s top farm export

NEW DELHI: Guar gum has emerged as India’s top farm export overtaking traditional heavyweights rice and cotton and looks set to power into the league of top 10 shipments from the country, thanks to the demand from the US oil and gas industry. Latest government data shows that guar gum exports have shot up nearly 139% on a year-on-year basis between April and January with shipments of about $4.9billion. In the previous year, it rose 374% in January alone compared to the same month of 2011. At $4.9billion, guar gum exports during the April-January period were a shade below the exports of plastics and linoleum products at $5billion. Basmati rice exports during the same period totalled $2.7 billion while raw cotton exports stood at $2.6billion. The shift in fortunes for the hitherto unknown guar gum has been phenomenal in recent years. Growing demand for the gum from the petroleum industry in the US has seen a sharp increase in the prices of the commodity, which is commonly known as guar phalli and has a variety of uses in sectors ranging from food to oil and gas drilling.

MAGIC BEANS

Guar, from which gum is extracted, is mainly grown in Rajasthan and Haryana India accounts for nearly 80% of global production of guar gum, now bringing in $4.9 billion Used as controlling agent in oil wells for easy drilling Also used in textile, food & cosmetics industries Guar gum prices rose 1,000% in ’12

The sharp rise in exports, thanks to the scorching demand from the US oil and gas industry, which uses the commodity while drilling for shale gas, has helped propel prices to stratospheric levels . The robust return from the crop has changed lifestyles and incomes in Rajasthan and Haryana where it is predominantly grown. TOI had earlier reported the dramatic impact of the sharp increase in guar gum demand and prices on lifestyles in Rajasthan. While the growth in demand may have slowed compared to the dizzy heights scaled in 2012, experts say the commodity will hold up for some time. Last year, prices shot up in the 900% to 1,000% range and a quintal of guar gum fetched more than Rs100,000 while prices for the seed shot up from Rs 3,000 to Rs 35,000. “More or less the demand will be there largely because of the requirements of US shale gas drilling,” said Naveen Mathur, associate director commodities and currencies at Angel Broking.