The world’s biggest edible oil importer relies on Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand for palm oil supplies. An increase in production will help India slash edible oil imports that account for nearly two-thirds of its total consumption.
India’s palm oil production is likely to jump to 1.2 to 1.5 million metric tons by 2030-31 from the current 400,000 tons, as farmers have been expanding the area, said Sougata Niyogi, chief executive officer of the oil palm plantation division at India’s biggest palm oil producer, Godrej Agrovet Ltd.
Oil palm trees start yielding fruit 3-4 years after planting, with yields increasing significantly at around 6 years.
The oil palm area has been rising at a rapid pace since New Delhi started providing incentives to farmers from 2021 to curb vegetable oil imports, which cost it $15 billion in the last fiscal year.
The area under oil palm cultivation increased to 375,000 hectares (926,600 acres) by last year, and an additional 80,000 to 100,000 hectares is likely to be added this year, Niyogi told Reuters on the sidelines of the Globoil India conference. “Government policies are helping farmers expand their planting areas. The new plantations should be ready for harvest by 2030-31, and that’s when we’ll see a big jump in production,” he said. India currently imports around 16 million tons of vegetable oils per annum, including 9 to 10 million tons of palm oil, mainly from Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.
Godrej Agrovet expects its palm oil production to double to 250,000 tons by 2030-31, Niyogi said.
Two years ago, there was a shortage of sprouts, which India imports to produce seedlings, but now enough sprouts are available to accelerate oil palm planting, he said.