Groundnut exports might fall 30% this year

Groundnut exports from India may fall by close to 30 per cent this financial year even as the new export norms set by a central agency is proving to be a deterrent for small processing units and exporters.

The norms set by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda) requires all groundnut processing units to register for export of groundnut and groundnut products. India’s groundnut exports for 2012-13 are estimated to be around 600,000 tonnes against about 850,000 tonnes a year ago.

“What Apeda has done was required for long as the government had received complaints from importing countries about the quality of Indian groundnut. But this year, we expect groundnut exports to dip by around 30 per cent to 600,000 tonnes,” said Rajesh Bheda, chairman, Indian Oilseed and Produce Export Promotion Council (IOPEPC), a trade body recognised by the Union ministry of commerce.

Apeda has made it mandatory for groundnut processors to register with IOPEPC before March 31. IOPEPC will then submit the data to Apeda’s online software, peanut.net.

“Exporters shall ensure that all peanuts and peanut products (PPP) units from whom they source the produce have made their data available to IOPEPC for submission to Peanut.net by March 31 since Customs would only accept Certificate of Export through Peanut.net from April 1, as advised by Apeda to them,” Apeda stated in its directions.

Most groundnut processing units are located in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. While most processing units have lesser capacities, many of them have objected to the Apeda directions fearing, increase in cost and loss of business to the larger players.

Groundnut shelling units in Gujarat have formed the Gujarat Oilseeds Processors Association (GOPA) to oppose new rules for groundnut export.

“Groundnut export from India has increased from 300,000 tonnes to 850,000 tonnes in the last three years. Countries like China, Indonesia and the Philippines are already buying from India. At a time when we are growing, the new rules will destroy the small shelling units,” said said Mukund Shah, president of GOPA.

According to IOPEPC, a large number of small groundnut processing units can take the benefit of subsidy, which is available under Apeda’s scheme for certification.

According to data provided by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, India’s groundnut (shelled) exports stood at around 821,000 tonnes for 2011-12, while in 2012-13 (till September) the exports stood at 330,141 tonnes.

India’s exports had surged sharply in 2011-12 from the past five-year average of around 400,000 tonnes, because of a crop failure in groundnut producing countries such as China and Argentina. “This year, there is not much favourable to India as crop is good in the US and Argentina. Also, the prices are much less than the Indian prices. This will also affect Indian exports,” said Bheda of IOPEPC.

Source:-www.business-standard.com

Export Ban - Move comes in the wake of deficient rainfall

As contingent measures to deal with the deficient rainfall, the Centre on Friday said it will stop all exports of non-Basmati rice and wheat, and bear half of the subsidy on diesel offered to farmers by the states.

  

The decisions were announced by Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar in the Rajya Sabha, a day after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Cabinet colleagues were briefed on the monsoon situation and Kharif sowing on Thursday. “We have already stopped the export of non-Basmati rice through the diplomatic channel (meant for humanitarian aid). We will soon stop export of two million tonnes of wheat through the same channel,” he said, responding to a debate on deficient monsoon and agriculture contingencies.

He assured the House that the government had rice and wheat stocks for 13 months in its kitty. On the soaring price of pulses, he hinted at the possibility of import of certain pulses which would be distributed through the public distribution system. Pulses are grown in the rain-fed areas of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, which did not receive adequate rain, creating a worrisome situation, he said.

On the tur dal price crossing Rs 100 a kg, Pawar said it might be a temporary phenomenon which could be managed if the monsoon situation improved. But the demand-supply gap may be met through import.

On paddy cultivation, he said “substantial” shortfall had been witnessed in Bihar, east Uttar Pradesh and west Uttar Pradesh. But Punjab and Haryana were not a problem as the farmers had sustained the transplanted crop with irrigated water. Pawar said while 100 MWe of additional power from the Central pool was released to the farmers in Punjab and Haryana, the Centre had agreed to release another 100 MWe for the next 15 days. The Centre has agreed to share half of the financial burden of the Bihar government that had announced a diesel subsidy for the farmers, he said.

As much as 15 lakh quintals of additional seeds have been made available to support the alternative plans.

Source: Deccan Herald

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China may increase their Rice imports from India

China may enhance rice import from India in coming years in the wake of rise in cost of farm production, an expert said today. 

"China's total rice import was 2-3 million tonnes from Vietnam and India last year. I can't say how much rice has been imported from India but definitely some quantity has been imported for the first time after a gap of many years," US- based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) Director General Shenggen Fan said at an event here. 

India emerged as the world's largest rice exporter in 2012 beating its Asian counterpart Thailand with shipment of around 10 million tonnes. 

"It is just a beginning and China's rice import from India could enhance in the coming years with cost of labour, water and land increasing. Also, it is cheaper to import foodgrains from India instead of providing subsidies to farmers," he said. 

As far as wheat is concerned, the country is buying largely from the US, Canada and Australia and not from India. "However, there is scope for import as India has a massive stocks of rice and wheat," he said on the sidelines of a function here. 

India has sufficient rice and wheat stocks due to bumper production. Last year, rice and wheat output was at record 104.32 million tonnes and 93.90 million tonnes, respectively. 

On poverty level in Asian countries like India and China, Fan said, "The region as a whole is not on track in meeting the millennium development goal (MDG) of cutting the rate of undernourishment by half between 1990 and 2015." 

Only in the southeastern Asia, the trend is on the MDG target, he said, adding that food and nutrition insecurity continues to be an important challenge in Asia. 

"India accounts for some 217 million or a quarter of all undernourished people globally. As a result, India is likely to miss the MDG target," he said. 

Innovations in agri-technologies, institutions and policy are to be improved to address the challenges of food and nutritional insecurity in Asia, he added. 

Emphasizing that investment in agri-research have substantially reduced rural poverty by stimulating farm growth and reducing food prices, Fan said: "The research finding shows that for every rupee invested in agri-research in India, Rs 13.5 is returned. 

"Therefore, Indian government should increase investment in agriculture, rural infrastructure and education as these have high payoffs in terms of raising smallholder farmers' productivity and incomes," he added. 

Doubling investment in agriculture research and output maximizing scenario results in 261 million people moving out of poverty globally by 2025, IFPRI observed.

Source: Economic Times