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Pass on benefits of import duty cuts in edible to consumers: Minister to industries

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Pass on benefits of import duty cuts in edible to consumers: Minister to industries


Employees fill plastic bottles with edible oil at an oil refinery plant in Mundra. File
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi has asked edible oil industry to be prompt on passing the benefits of duty reduction on crude edible oils to consumers to ensure that consumers experience a corresponding decrease in retail prices. He was addressing a round-table meeting organised by the Indian Vegetable Oil Producers’ Association (IVPA) here on on Thursday (July 24, 2025).

Mr. Joshi asked the IVPA members to focus on value addition through processing and refining, support innovation to increase efficiency and productivity.

He said the industries can work with Primary Agricultural Credit Societies and Farmers’ Producing Organisations to actively encourage precision agriculture, artificial intelligence in crop management, sustainable farming techniques, promote high-yield varieties of oilseeds and strengthen the post-harvest value chain. He said through policy innovation, increased investment in agri-tech, and public-private collaborations, India can remain competitive in the global vegetable oil market while securing domestic needs.

The Minister said in the last ten years, production of oilseeds increased by 44% from 275 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) in 2014-15 to 397 LMT in 2023-24 and yield increased by 22% from 1,075 kilograms per hectare in 2014-15 to 1,314 in 2023-24. “Export of oil meals, oilseeds and minor oils was about 5.44 million tons in the financial year 2023-24 valued at ₹29,587 crore,” he said adding that India today stands at a critical juncture in the global edible oil trade, being one of the largest consumers and importer of vegetable oils. “We import approximately 56% of our edible oil requirements,” he said.

Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra told reporters on the sidelines of the meeting that the Union government will notify a new order to regulate vegetable oil products with modern, transparent and technologically advanced provisions. The 2025 Vegetable Oil Products, Production and Availability Regulation Order, the secretary said, will replace the 2011. “The associations have been consulted. It’s in the final stages now, probably by next week it will be notified,” Mr. Chopra said.



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