India's Addiction To Costly Cooking Oil Imports Seen Lasting For Years

Intialaiset ostavat todennäköisesti kalliita ruokaöljyjä ulkomailta vielä ainakin 15 vuoden ajan, koska kysyntä on edelleen huomattavasti kotimaista tuotantoa nopeampaa.

Consumption is expected to climb in India by as much as 17 percent over the next four years, according to B.V. Mehta, executive director of the Solvent Extractors' Association. A rise that steep would further widen the manufacturing gap: India will likely produce about 10 million tons of edible oils in 2021-22, compared with local consumption of  jopa 23 miljoonaa tonnia.

India, one of the world's largest buyers of vegetable oils, has struggled to wean itself off imports. Farmers have typically focused on growing cotton and staples like rice, wheat and sugar, partly because the government sets price floors for these crops and buys some of them -- such as food grains -- in bulk for its welfare programs.

A shift in mindset is not likely overnight. High-yielding rapeseed and sunflower varieties and remunerative prices could boost the nation's output. But incentives for India's farmers to grow oilseeds are still weak, according to Siraj Chaudhry, managing director and chief executive officer of National Commodities Management Services Ltd., a warehousing and trading company.

Change has to start locally, he said, with a close watch on the crop cycle. Rice farmers should be encouraged to grow sunflower during India's rainy months, for instance, and wheat producers to cultivate rapeseed in the winter. Higher production of rice bran oil and expensive peanuts could also serve as supplements, he said.

Palm oil, in particular, has potential to close the production gap. Indians often prefer it over soft oils because it's cheaper and can be blended easily with other fats. It also lasts longer than other choices, making it cost-efficient for bulk users such as restaurants and hotels.

Toimitusketjun osan siirtäminen paikallisesti voi auttaa. Hyödykeasiantuntijat ovat lobbannut Intian hallitusta tuomaan soijapapuja ja murskaamaan ne kotimaassa sen sijaan, että se vain ostaisi soijaöljyä. Tämä voisi mahdollisesti lisätä soijaöljyn tarjontaa kotimaassa ja vastata siipikarjateollisuuden kasvavaan rehun kysyntään.

"It has to be a combination of factors, including providing new technology to boost productivity," Chaudhry said.

Kustannusongelma
Cooking oils are an integral part of the Indian diet. They play a starring role in feasts served during the country's massive festivals. They're used to fry jalebis, the sticky, road-side sweet, and for practically every other staple dish. Their ubiquity has made India the world's biggest importer of palm, soybean and sunflower oil.

Kotimaisen palmuöljyntuotannon lisääminen lisäisi Mehtan mukaan kasviöljyn kokonaistarjontaa maassa. Intian tavoitteena on tuottaa miljoona tonnia vuoteen 2026 mennessä ja lisätä tuotantoa edelleen 2,8 miljoonaan tonniin vuoteen 2030 mennessä 300 000 tonnista, hän sanoi.

But price control is increasingly a wrinkle. India's attempts to ease inflation by cutting duties on edible oil imports and imposing limits on inventories have so far failed to lower costs. Most of the commodities are linked to global prices that have rallied in the past year due to a supply crunch and rising biofuel use.

India's consumer food prices rose in December at their fastest pace in six months amid soaring costs for vegetable oils, which jumped more than 24 percent from a year earlier, according to the statistics ministry. The increase comes despite a reduction in edible oil import taxes, which have further boosted world prices on expectations of higher purchases from India.

Ruoan hinnat nousevat ympäri maailmaa. Polttoaineeksi muunnettavissa olevat viljat ovat kärsineet erityisen voimakkaasti raakaöljyn hinnan noususta. Kuala Lumpurissa eniten kulutetun kasviöljyn, palmuöljyn, hinta nousi yli 30 prosenttia vuonna 2021. Chicagon soijaöljyn hinta koki samanlaisen nousun samana ajanjaksona.

Samaan aikaan New Delhissä kasviöljyjen --, kuten rapsista, auringonkukasta, soijapavuista ja palmuista uutettujen --, määrä nousi elintarvikeministeriön mukaan 12 prosentista yli 30 prosenttiin vuonna 2021.

Palmuöljy nousi maanantaina uuteen ennätykseen. Vertailufutuurit Kuala Lumpurissa nousivat peräti 1,1 prosenttia 5 380 ringgitiin (1 286) tonnilta, mikä on kaikkien aikojen korkein -aktiivisimman, rullaavan sopimuksen osalta. Kilpailijan soijaöljy nousi Chicagossa kuudentena päivänä 63,08 senttiin kilolta.

"It will probably be better off if the country can meet 60 percent to 70 percent of its demand from domestic output and the rest from imports, reversing the current trend," Chaudhry said.