Vegetable Oils Import Up 28% In March

Chennai: Import of vegetable oils, for cooking and industrial use, continued to rise and increased by 28 per cent in March, while overall shipments into the country during the current oil year (November 2007-October 2008) was up at 38 per cent.

According to the Solvent Extractors Association, cooking oil imports increased to 4.22 lakh tonnes (lt) against 3.18 lt during the same period a year ago. For the oil year, imports have increased to 22.64 lt against 16.43 lt.

peak crushing season

Imports have increased despite November-March being peak crushing season with kharif oilseeds being available and record production of 94 lakh tonnes of soyabean. One reason for the rise in production despite the peak crushing season is that the carryover stocks from the previous season were lower in view of a lower crop.

Imports have increased despite rise in global and domestic vegetable oil prices. According to B.V. Mehta, Executive Director of the Solvent Extractors Association, the rise in imports was due to the middle income group in the country being able to keep the demand rising in view of higher income.

This demand was able to neutralise the squeeze that was taking place among the lower income group.

Overall imports of vegetable oils are seen at 58 lt to 60 lt this oil year, a little higher than last year.

crude palm oil

Mehta said imports of crude palm oil showed a rising tendency also because of reports of Indonesia’s decision to raise export tax. The data show that refined oil imports have increased by two percentage points from last year.

Again among the vegetable oils, import of palm group of oils continues to witness an increase, making up 88 per cent of the total shipments into the country. This is against the oils making up 77 per cent of the total import last year.

Imports are seen gathering further momentum on lower rabi crop, steady global vegoil prices and the Centre’s decision to lower Customs duty to zero for unrefined oils and 7.5 per cent for refined oils.

Vegetable Oil Imports Fall 25% In Dec '07

NEW DELHI: India’s vegetable oil imports dipped by 25% during December 2007, on better crushing and domestic availability of the commodity, the Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA) said on Tuesday.

It said the import of RBD palmolein and crude palm oil slipped by 31.27% to 12,019 tonne and 18.38% to 2.53 lakh tonne during December, compared to the corresponding period a year ago.

However, crude palmolein imports increased impressively by 67% to 3,340 tonne, while soyabean oil increased marginally to 7,500 tonne, it said. The total imports of vegetable oil during the first two months of the edible oil year 2007-08 (edible oil year runs from November of one year to October of the next year), stood at 7.42 lakh tonne, down by 1.22% compared to the same period a year ago, SEA said in a statement.

Total edible oil imports during these two months stood at 6.24 lakh tonne while non-edible oils were at 1.09 lakh tonne, it added. India annually consumes about 10 million tonne of edible oils, with imports contributing half of that. It buys palm oil from Malaysia and Argentina and soyaoil from Brazil and Argentina.