'Cut edible oil imports, give offtake assurance to farmers for produce'

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday nudged private corporates to shun imports and buy oilseeds produced locally by providing offtake assurance to farmers, creating a win-win situation for both. India, he said, is looking to jack up edible oil production by about 50 per cent in the next 3-4 years. Modi said there is a huge potential to expand cultivation of palm oil under the 'National Mission on Edible Oil'. Addressing a webinar on the positive impact of the Union Budget 2022 on the agriculture sector, the Prime Minister said investors should come forward to promote crop diversification.

Citing examples of oilseeds and pulses, Modi said, There is a huge demand for these (pulses and oilseeds) in our country. The corproate world should come forward. There is an assured market for you (corporates). What is the need for import?" The businesses, the Prime Minister said, can tell in advance to farmers about how much quantities of pulses and oilseeds they would purchase. He noted that the agriculture insurance system already provides protection against crop losses. The Prime Minister further stressed on the need to study India's food requirement.

"We all need to work together to ensure that whatever (food) items we need, they get produced in India only," he said. The government has set a target to increase domestic production of edible oil by 50 per cent in the next 3-4 years, Modi said and emphasised on achieving the target within time. A programme to increase oil palm cultivation has already been launched, he added.

It is to be noted that India imports 60-65 per cent of its edible oil requirement.

As per industry data, the country's edible oil import bill shot up to Rs 1.17 lakh crore in 2020-21 oil year ending October 2021, compared to nearly Rs 72,000 crore in the previous year due to rise in global prices.

Modi also exhorted Indian business houses to help in branding and promotion of Indian millets (core cereals), which have high nutritional value. Year 2023 has been declared as 'International Year of Millets'. He also talked about a huge opportunity for the corporate world in the field of nano-fertiliser, which is going to be a game changer as well as food processing and ethanol manufacturing.

Modi also called on startups and private investors to create a pan-India network of soil testing labs. He said there is a need to create awareness among farmers about the importance of regular soil testing of their farm land.