India’s non-Genetically engineered oil meal are in demand from Europe, and Middle-East and South-East Asian countries. The export of oil meals has increased by 72 per cent in 2023 May compared to May 2022.
India’s non-Genetically Modified (non-GM) soybean meals are preferred mainly by certain European countries and the USA over Genetically Modified (GM), mostly grown in Brazil, Argentina and the USA.
“Indian Soybean Meal being non-GM has an advantage and being preferred by especially western nations where awareness of environmental impacts are high,” said BV Mehta, Executive Director, The Solvent Extractors’ Association of India.
The major importers of Indian oil meals in Western countries are the USA, followed by Canada, France, New Zealand, and the rest of Europe.
The exports of oil meals for May 2023 reported 4.36 lakh tonnes (LT) compared to 2.54 LT in May 2022. It is up by 72 per cent. The overall export of oil meals from April to May 2023 was reported at 930,044 tons compared to 586,415 tons during the same period of last year, mainly due to the sharp increase in soybean and rapeseed meal exports. Out of it, the export of rapeseed meals has set a new record since the export started.
“It is hearting to note that this financial year (2022-23), the export of rapeseed meal has set a new record and reported at 2.3 million tonnes, ever highest since export started,” said Mehta.
The major consumers of Indian soybean meal are South East Asia, where India has a logistic advantage and also falls in price. The rupee depreciation also pushed the overall export. “There is around a 36 percent fall in the price of soybean since April 2022 which also made India’s soybean more lucrative,” says Manoj Shukla, a Mumbai-based oilseeds commodity analyst.
The soybean price fell from over 7600 per quintal in April 2022 to Rs 4900 per quintal in May 2023, helping in reviving the export. Major importers of Indian oil meals are South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Bangladesh and other far-east countries.
