India's Jan oilmeal exports fall 91 per cent from a year ago to record low

The export of oilmeals during January 2016 is reported ever lowest export at 17,243 tonnes compared to 185,654 tonnes - down by 91 per cent, according to data compiled by Solvent Extractors' Association. The overall export of oilmeals during April 2015 to January,2016 is reduced to half (51 per cent) compared to last year and reported at 1,005,085 tonnes against 2,047,937 tonnes during the same period of last year and 3,646,095 tons in 2013-14. Soybean crushing is very much reduced due to continuous disparity and high price of domestic market affecting overall domestic availability of both oils and meals. The capacity utilization is at the lowest. Industry is passing through very tough time and many plants are close down or operating at very low capacity due to disparity in crushing and export. Rapeseed meal export is also reduced to 1/3rd of last year.

The export of soybean meal is at a historical low during current year and reported just 69,263 tons during the first ten months of the financial year 2015-16 compared to 549,162 tonnes in the previous year 2014-15 and 2,375,231 tons during the same period of 2013-14. Currently FOB/FAS Indian soybean meal is quoted at $492 per tonne against Argentina origin soybean meal CIF Rotterdam at $335 per tonne. Indian soybean meal is totally out priced by about $160 per tonne in international market.

The alarming declines of Indian oilseeds production and crushing are going along with booming import demand for vegetable oils and have brought oilmeal exports from India almost to a standstill. The Association has pleaded with the Central Government for reducing the import duty to 5-10 per cent from the current 30 per cent on high oil content oilseeds like rapeseed/mustard(canola) and sunflower seed. This will have a multitude of advantages that is reduce import of edible oils, larger availability of oilmeals for local consumption by feed industry and export and increase value addition in India thus contribute towards the Prime Ministers "Make-in-India Programme". Further the oilseeds imports will not have any adverse impact on the farmers as they are protected with an assured MSP by the Government.