A surge in the export of rapeseed meal helped India record a significant growth in the overall export of oilmeals during the first five months of 2022-23.

 

According to Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA) data, the overall export of oilmeals increased to 15.31 lakh tonnes (lt) during the first five months of the financial year 2022-23 against 10.92 lt in the corresponding period of the previous financial year, recording a growth of 40.15 per cent.

 

Export of oilmeals from India increased to 2.82 lt during August against 1.64 lt in the same month previous year, recording a growth of 71.39 per cent.

 

BV Mehta, Executive Director of SEA, said the export of rapeseed meal doubled during the first five months of the current financial year and stood at 10.80 lt against 5.42 lt in the corresponding period a year ago, recording a growth of 99.06 per cent.

 

He attributed this to the record crop of rapeseed and crushing. These factors resulted in highest processing, leading to the availability for export.

 

He said India is the most competitive supplier of rapeseed meal to South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand and other Far-East countries at $295 a tonne (f.o.b). The current price of rapeseed meal (f.o.b Hamburg) is quoted at $355 a tonne.

 

Soyameal prices down

Stating that India was outpriced in the international market in case of the export of soyabean meal up to now, he said with the fall in local soyabean price to the level of Rs.5,200/5,300 a quintal, the meal price also reduced to $560 a tonne (f.ob) from the highest level of $888 in March. Now, the soyabean meal (ex-Rotterdam) is quoted at $554.

 

With international soyabean meal price likely to fall further, and the expected good soyabean crop, coupled with substantial carry forward, crushing will increase from October onwards. Export of soyabean meal from India may increase starting with new season, he said.

 

India exported 17,547 tonnes of soyabean meal in August against 10,975 tonnes in August 2021, recording a growth of 59.88 per cent. However, the overall soyabean export for the first five months of 2022-23 declined to 1.08 lt from 1.55 lt in the corresponding period of 2021-22.

 

He said the export of castor meal was more or less same level as that of the last year, and rice bran extraction was down due to lesser demand from importing countries.

 

S Korea major importer

South Korea imported 4.52 lt of oilmeals from India during the first five months of 2022-23 against 3.08 lt in the corresponding period of 2021-22. This included 3.59 lt of rapeseed meal, 75,939 tonnes of castorseed meal and 16,755 tonnes of soyabean meal.

 

Vietnam imported 2.52 lt of oilmeals (2.30 lt) during April-August of 2022-23. This included 1.40 lt of rice bran extraction, 1.09 lt of rapeseed meal, 2,055 tonnes of soyabean meal, and 982 tonnes of groundnut meal.

 

India exported 3.17 lt of oilmeals (1.20 lt) to Thailand; 1.63 lt of oilmeals (1.60 lt) to Bangladesh; and 54,747 tonnes (37,882 tonnes) of oilmeals to Taiwan during the first five months of the current financial year.

 

In an effort to increase the export of agricultural and food products from Ladakh, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, through its export promotion body APEDA, is working with Apricot value chain stakeholders to increase exports from Ladakh under the brand 'Ladakh Apricot.'

 

APEDA's initiatives to promote the export of apricots and other agri-products are expected to boost the region's overall development. APEDA's export promotion strategy focuses heavily on the canopy management of apricot orchards/trees in order to achieve a more uniform and high-quality apricot harvest.

 

According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, it would aid in the continued marketing, product development, research and development (R&D), traceability enhancement, and brand promotion of the apricot, which is one of Ladakh's most important fruit crops and is locally known as 'Chuli.'

 

'APEDA, in collaboration with Ladakh's Horticulture Department, has also planned to organize canopy management awareness drives in Kargil and Leh, where scientists from Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Kashmir (SKAUST-Kashmir) and Defence Institute of High Altitude Research (DIHAR) will help farmers manage their apricot orchards/trees in a better way to have a uniform harvest,' the ministry said.

 

APEDA is also working to improve packaging for fresh apricots, transport protocols, and brand promotion of 'Ladakh Apricots' for better price realization of trans-Himalayan Ladakh apricots, which are known for their superior quality. 'Work on obtaining a GI tag for the Ladakh apricot is also underway.' Notably, the majority of the apricot produced in Ladakh is consumed locally, with only a small amount sold in dried form,' according to the statement.

 

Given the importance of logistics support in the export promotion of any product, APEDA is working to increase logistics support for apricots through the air on the lines of the market linkage scheme - PARVAZ and by road to the region's nearest international exit ports in order to streamline exports from the region.

 

APEDA, in collaboration with the UT of Ladakh, is also assisting in the development of export infrastructures such as the establishment of integrated pack house facilities with grading lines, pre-cooling units with cold storage, and insulated/refrigerated transportation up to packhouse/exit ports, as well as common infrastructure facilities such as pre-shipment treatment facilities such as irradiation, Vapor Heat Treatment, and Hot Water Dip Treatment for compliance with Phyto-Sanit

 

APEDA identified fresh apricot fruit exports from the UT of Ladakh in 2021, and trial shipments were sent to Dubai near the end of the apricot season in 2021. Because of the product's unique taste and aroma, as well as the product's demand in the international market, the results and acceptability were overwhelming.

 

APEDA organized an international buyer-seller meeting in Leh on June 14, 2022, just before the season's apricot harvest began. More than 30 buyers from India, the United States, Bangladesh, Oman, Dubai, Mauritius, and other countries were brought together to meet with producers and suppliers of apricots and other agricultural products from the UT of Ladakh.

 

'As a result, for the first time, 35 MT of fresh apricots were exported from Ladakh to various countries during the 2022 season. During the season 2022, trial shipments of Ladakh Apricots were also made to countries such as Singapore, Mauritius, and Vietnam,' the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.

 

Ladakh is the largest apricot producer in the country, with a total production of 15,789 tonnes, accounting for nearly 62 percent of total production. The region produced approximately 1,999 tonnes of dried apricots, making it the country's largest producer of dried apricots. Ladakh has a total area under apricot cultivation of 2,303 hectares.

Saudi Arabia’s main state wheat buying agency, the Saudi Grains Organization (SAGO) on Thursday issued an international tender to purchase about 535,000 tonnes of wheat, European traders said.

 

A copy of the tender document said the deadline for submissions of price offers is Friday, Sept. 16, traders said.

 

The tender sought nine cargoes of hard wheat with 12.5% protein, the document showed.

 

Two 60,000 tonne consignments were sought for Jeddah port, three 60,000 tonne consignments for Yanbu, three 60,000 tonne cargos for Dammam and one 55,000 tonne consignment for Jizan.

 

The wheat is for arrival in periods from Nov. 10 to Feb. 25.

Even as the government is preparing to unveil the National Logistics Policy on September 17, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry plans to develop a domestic index to track the logistics cost.

 

Sources in the ministry said it is a part of the larger policy of the government to develop a local framework to assess the logistics cost in India, as the one available currently is not providing the correct picture.

 

The logistics costs that the policymakers are currently following are being measured by an international agency, and according to it, in India, the logistics cost is 13-14 per cent of the GDP. The new logistics policy aims to bring this cost to 8 per cent of the GDP by 2030.

 

'We believe the logistics cost is lower than the often quoted figure of 13 per cent, and we believe we need to have a local system to measure the same to correctly reflect the cost incurred by logistics and transport. The current system is very ‘impressionist’,' said a commerce ministry official.

 

The same official said it is unfair to compare the logistics costs of a large country like India or the US with those of smaller countries.'Large countries and countries with bigger agriculture and manufacturing component in GDP will invariably have higher logistics cost,' he said.

 

According to the last World Bank Logistics Performance Index published in 2018, India was ranked 44th in terms of logistics performance. The new logistics policy envisages creating a Unique Logistics Interface Platform to integrate the existing 30 digital platforms developed across different ministries so as to enable real-time information to all stakeholders.

 

It also plans standardisation of physical assets -- like the size of containers, trucks, etc-- better engagement with states, development of logistics parks, etc. The whole policy is part of the PM Gatishakti plan launched last year.

Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmer Welfare Mr. Narendra Singh Tomar addressed the AgriTech Summit here today. In his address, Mr. Narendra Singh Tomar said that the government is working continuously for betterment of small farmers of the country. Many important schemes are being implemented in this direction, so that the challenges of farming can be reduced and the income of the farmers can be increased. Simultaneously, India is on a journey to become number one in the world in the agriculture sector.

 

Mr. Tomar said that agriculture is a very important sector for our country. We have accepted the primacy of agriculture, in this regard, work is being done in the direction of its progress, changes in it, inclusion of policies, cooperation etc. There are 86 percent small farmers in the country, who have small acreage and cannot invest much. The government is working under the leadership of Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi to take these farmers forward, because if the balance of these 86 percent farmers remains low, then neither agriculture nor the country will progress. Keeping this in mind, the government has started the work of creating 10,000 new FPOs. Rs 6865 crore is being spent for this. Of these, 3,000 have become FPOs. If small farmers join these FPOs, then the area under cultivation increases, the collective power of the farmer’s increases. If there is only one type of farming, then production will increase and farmers will be able to get good price. This effort is being made to increase the income of the farmers.

 

Mr. Tomar said that the government is also working in the field of pulses and oilseeds. Both were areas of scarcity. Farmers have ventured into pulses and have made huge leaps in production. There is still a gap in oilseeds, for which the government is working on the oilseed mission. We know that edible oils have to be imported. Palm oil is consumed in about 56 percent of the oil consumed in our country, so the Palm Oil Mission has been started, on which the government will spend 11 thousand crores. About 28 lakh hectare area in the country is suitable for palm oil cultivation. In the first phase, efforts are being made to increase the cultivation of palm in an area of ??6 lakh hectares. When the palm oil crop comes after three to four years, the import dependence will be less.

 

The Union Agriculture Minister said that today there is a need to deal with the challenges of the agriculture sector, how technology should be introduced in it, how to increase the availability of private investment, how to create employment opportunities, Prime Minister Modi has special concern about agriculture. This is the reason why a lot of effort has been made in that direction which can be contributed by the government. Before 2014, the agriculture budget used to be around Rs 22 thousand crore, which is Rs 1.32 lakh crore today. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana is being operated for the farmer to get a security cover. In this scheme, Rs 1.22 lakh crore has been paid to the farmers to compensate them for the damages caused to their crops in six years. So far, Rs 2.03 lakh crore has been deposited in the accounts of 11 and a half crore farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, so that farmers can get income support.

 

Talking about technology in the agriculture sector, Mr. Tomar said that the government is working on Digital Agri Mission so that the farmers can reach the government and the government can reach all the farmers. If transparency will increase through technology, then all the farmers will be able to get the full benefits of all the schemes. Under the Digital Agri Mission, if all the farmers, agricultural area, government schemes, central and state governments and banks are also brought on this platform, then the benefits of the schemes will be easily available. Farmers are being linked with mechanization. The government is promoting drone technology. The more technology and transparency increase in agriculture, the more it will benefit agriculture and the country will move forward. Awards were given in various categories in the program. 

Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmer Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar addressed the AgriTech Summit here today. In his address, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar said that the government is working continuously for betterment of small farmers of the country. Many important schemes are being implemented in this direction, so that the challenges of farming can be reduced and the income of the farmers can be increased. Simultaneously, India is on a journey to become number one in the world in the agriculture sector.

 

Shri Tomar said that agriculture is a very important sector for our country. We have accepted the primacy of agriculture, in this regard, work is being done in the direction of its progress, changes in it, inclusion of policies, cooperation etc. There are 86 percent small farmers in the country, who have small acreage and cannot invest much. The government is working under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to take these farmers forward, because if the balance of these 86 percent farmers remains low, then neither agriculture nor the country will progress. Keeping this in mind, the government has started the work of creating 10,000 new FPOs. Rs 6865 crore is being spent for this. Of these, 3,000 have become FPOs. If small farmers join these FPOs, then the area under cultivation increases, the collective power of the farmer’s increases. If there is only one type of farming, then production will increase and farmers will be able to get good price. This effort is being made to increase the income of the farmers.

 

Shri Tomar said that the government is also working in the field of pulses and oilseeds. Both were areas of scarcity. Farmers have ventured into pulses and have made huge leaps in production. There is still a gap in oilseeds, for which the government is working on the oilseed mission. We know that edible oils have to be imported. Palm oil is consumed in about 56 percent of the oil consumed in our country, so the Palm Oil Mission has been started, on which the government will spend 11 thousand crores. About 28 lakh hectare area in the country is suitable for palm oil cultivation. In the first phase, efforts are being made to increase the cultivation of palm in an area of ??6 lakh hectares. When the palm oil crop comes after three to four years, the import dependence will be less.

 

The Union Agriculture Minister said that today there is a need to deal with the challenges of the agriculture sector, how technology should be introduced in it, how to increase the availability of private investment, how to create employment opportunities, Prime Minister Modi has special concern about agriculture. This is the reason why a lot of effort has been made in that direction which can be contributed by the government. Before 2014, the agriculture budget used to be around Rs 22 thousand crore, which is Rs 1.32 lakh crore today. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana is being operated for the farmer to get a security cover. In this scheme, Rs 1.22 lakh crore has been paid to the farmers to compensate them for the damages caused to their crops in six years. So far, Rs 2.03 lakh crore has been deposited in the accounts of 11 and a half crore farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, so that farmers can get income support.

 

Talking about technology in the agriculture sector, Shri Tomar said that the government is working on Digital Agri Mission so that the farmers can reach the government and the government can reach all the farmers. If transparency will increase through technology, then all the farmers will be able to get the full benefits of all the schemes. Under the Digital Agri Mission, if all the farmers, agricultural area, government schemes, central and state governments and banks are also brought on this platform, then the benefits of the schemes will be easily available. Farmers are being linked with mechanization. The government is promoting drone technology. The more technology and transparency increase in agriculture, the more it will benefit agriculture and the country will move forward. Awards were given in various categories in the program.  

India is poised to allow 5 million tonnes of sugar exports in the first tranche for the new marketing year beginning October, two government sources said on Wednesday.

 

'The permission to export 5 million tonnes of sugar is expected in the coming weeks and once we have a better sense about next sugar year's production, we could allow another 3 to 5 million tonnes for exports,' said one of the sources who didn't wish to be named in line with official rules.

 

Although it's a little early to get a clear idea about next year's production, early estimates suggest sugar output in 2022-23 would hover around this year's record 36 million tonnes, the official said.

 

On Oct. 1, 2022, when the new season begins, mills' carryover stocks from the previous season are expected at 6 million tonnes against 8 million tonnes a year earlier.

 

'After factoring in local demand, the need for ethanol production and mills' requirement for their yearly carryover stocks, we believe that India will have a large exportable surplus in the 2022-23 year,' said the second source.

 

'But given the erratic weather patterns impacting crops and agricultural production, we do not want to allow exports of 8 or 9 million tonnes in just one go,' the second source said. 'We'll be rather cautious.'

 

India banned wheat exports earlier this year and last week imposed curbs on rice shipments as adverse climatic conditions hit output and planting.

 

India's domestic sugar consumption is estimated at around 27.5 million tonnes and mills are expected to divert 4.5 million tonnes of sugar for ethanol production in the 2022-23 season. Mills will also set aside at least 6 million tonnes of sugar as their annual carryover stocks.

 

Cashing in on attractive global prices traders have already signed deals to export 400,000 tonnes of raw sugar for the 2022/23 season.

Nepal has requested India to lift restrictions imposed on the export of wheat, sugar and rice.

 

The request was made during a meeting held between Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal and his Indian counterpart Vinay Mohan Kwarta in New Delhi, India on Tuesday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

 

The request comes in the wake of people and businesspersons in Nepal calling for the government to request India to lift the restriction on these agro products. There are fears that the restriction on the export of these products would cause a sharp rise in the prices of these food items in Nepal.

 

India has been imposing a ban on the export of sugar and wheat since June 1. This has hit the supply of these agro products in Nepal and has helped hike their prices. While the retail price of sugar has reached Rs 110 per kg, the price of wheat flour has increased by around Rs 10 per kg in the local market.  

 

Similarly, India has imposed a 20 per cent duty on export of all varieties of rice, except basmati and parboiled rice, with effect from September 9. This is likely to cause a sharp increase in the price of rice—the main food item in Nepal.

 

According to a press statement issued by the MoFA, Foreign Secretary Paudyal also discussed with his Indian counterpart to ensure smooth supply of chemical fertilizers. 'Recalling the outcome of high-level visits, both sides discussed seamless power trade under mutually beneficial arrangement,' said the press statement.

 

The two foreign secretaries also held discussions on issues related to boundary disputes. The two sides have agreed to complete the boundary works in remaining segments through established bilateral mechanisms.

 

Foreign Secretary Paudyal reached New Delhi at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Kwatra on Tuesday. The two Foreign Secretaries held bilateral meetings at the Hyderabad House, New Delhi.

 

They discussed multiple areas of cooperation between Nepal and India covering trade, transit, connectivity, infrastructure, power sector, irrigation and inundation, agriculture, investment, development cooperation, health sector cooperation, culture, and people to people relations, among others.

 

According to the MoFA, the two foreign secretaries discussed the ways and means to build on momentum generated by those visits. They also discussed cooperation in multilateral forums. They expressed satisfaction at the progress made in different areas including power sector, construction of transmission line, railway connectivity, construction of ICPs, motorable bridge and other important infrastructures. Early conclusion of the Transit Treaty including its Protocol and the Memorandum to the Protocol and expediting the review of the Treaty of Trade was also discussed during the meeting.

India and France on Wednesday agreed to enhance their cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, including through trilateral partnerships with Australia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), in areas such as maritime security, trade and climate action.

 

External affairs minister S Jaishankar and his visiting French counterpart, Catherine Colonna, also discussed the Ukraine conflict and common efforts to respond to its global consequences, especially food security and rising energy prices. Colonna blamed food security issues on Russia’s war against Ukraine, and said France and India could jointly move an initiative at the G20 to support the most vulnerable countries.

 

A key part of the discussions between the two ministers focused on joint efforts for a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific. Jaishankar acknowledged France as 'very much an Indo-Pacific player' and a country with a long-standing presence in the Indian Ocean, and said both sides can work together to ensure peace, stability, security and progress in the region.

 

Colonna is currently on her first bilateral visit to Asia since assuming office in May. The visit comes against the backdrop of India’s military standoff with China on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and concerns in France about China’s actions across the Indo-Pacific, including in the Taiwan Strait.

 

As part of their partnership for the Indo-Pacific, France and India agreed to establish an Indo-Pacific Trilateral Development Cooperation Fund to support sustainable innovative solutions in the region. The two sides will hold a trilateral ministerial meeting with Australia on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York this month. Another trilateral with the UAE will be upgraded to the ministerial level following an inaugural meeting of officials in July.

 

'One reflection of the expanding comfort between India and France is the interest in creating trilateral formats with other partners,' Jaishankar told a joint media interaction with Colonna after their talks.

 

The two countries are accelerating the implementation of a joint roadmap on the blue economy and ocean governance that was adopted in February, and India will be the first country of honour at the Sea Tech Week in Brest, France, during September 25-27. In the coming weeks, France will send an expert to India’s National Institute of Ocean Technology.

 

Colonna said France wants the Indo-Pacific to be an 'area of stability, rule of law, prosperity and environment protection', and the two countries are working to provide tangible solutions in the region. The European Union (EU) too is a fully committed actor in the Indo-Pacific and France is mobilising the EU to conduct more projects in the region, especially for sustainable infrastructure, she said.

 

'What applies to Europe and the Indo-Pacific applies everywhere: France and India reject a world where ‘might makes right’,' she added.

 

Colonna also raised the Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying it has strongly challenged fundamental principles that underpin the global rules-based order. 'A permanent member of the Security Council is...trampling on all the principles on which our international order is based by waging a devastating war of aggression on the territory of another sovereign state,' she said.

 

'When the core principles of the international rules-based order are flouted anywhere, they are weakened everywhere, including in the Indo-Pacific, where respect for international law has been undermined for some time now,' she added.

 

Colonna acknowledged the history of India’s relationship with Russia but said this doesn’t prevent India and France from acting to deal with the consequences of the Ukraine conflict and telling the 'Russian president that this conflict has to come to an end'. Jaishankar too called for a return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy.

 

'If you look...at the major countries of the world, two leaders who have been regularly engaging both sides to the conflict are Prime Minister Modi and President Macron. I think the end objective, which is a return to the negotiating table, is something that we share,' he said.

 

Colonna met Modi and conveyed Macron’s message of friendship and cooperation. Modi conveyed his desire to welcome the French President to India at an early opportunity.

 

Colonna also met National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and discussed defence and security cooperation.

Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Shobha Karandlaje on Wednesday emphasised the need for agricultural startups to play a key role in handholding small and marginal farmers in the country by ensuring higher income for their produce in domestic and global markets.

 

Addressing the ‘MANAGE- Samunnati Agri Startup Awards 2022’ event at the National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management in Rajendranagar, she encouraged agri startups to make India a global leader in agriculture through their innovations.

 

Highlighting the initiatives of the Centre to support the agricultural sector through the agriculture infrastructure fund, Remunerative Approach for Agriculture and Allied sector Rejuvenation, oilseed mission, and promotion of FPOs, agri startups and One District One Product (ODOP), she reiterated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to make the country self-reliant in agriculture.

 

Karandlaje gave away awa-rds to 32 agri startups, which included five national-level awards, two special ones for women-led agri startups and 27 State-level ones. The winners received cash prizes and mementos.

 

During her visit, she also inaugurated the 15-day International Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) training programme of the Ministry of External Affairs on ‘Computer Applications in Agricultural Extension’, which was attended by 30 delegates from 15 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.