Economics of Production and Marketing of Oil Seeds and Edible Oils.
Nagaveni C M1
1Research scholar, Development studies, Kannada University, Hampi
Email : cnaguashik@gmail.com
Abstract
Agriculture is the backbone of Indian economy and it is the largest industry in India, contributing for the growth of other sectors also. Even today, in spite of tremendous growth in industrial sector. Oil seeds occupy a prominent position in the agricultural economy, as oil extracted from these sources not only forms an essential part of human diet but also serves as an important agent in the production of different industrial products. India is one of the leading oil seed producing countries, being perhaps the only country in the world, having the largest number of commercial varieties of oil seeds. Edible oil as an important item of consumption has rightly acquired considerable importance all these days. Being an essential food item for general populace, its importance can be gauged from the fact that it is used all over the world, as a major source of nutrition for human beings.
Keywords: Marketing of oil seeds, production. Oil processing.
Introduction
Edible oil as an important item of consumption has rightly acquired considerable importance all these days. The following are the main edible oils used in day to day life i.e., groundnut oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, corn oil, linseed oil, rapeseed oil, palm oil and rice bran oil etc. Taste and preference of edible oil varies from State to State and from person to person. People in Northern States prefer rapeseed oil, cotton seed oil, soya oil for cooking purpose. People in Kerala mainly prefer coconut oil for frying. The present study focus only on two important oils viz., groundnut oil and sun flower oil. Moreover, an attempt has been made to study the economics of production of oil seeds and the marketing practices followed in marketing of oil seeds. The study also highlights the production of edible oils the study shows the opinion of the consumers towards the various marketing strategies adopted by the marketers of edible oil. The findings of the study will be useful to provide some good suggestions to improve the productivity and marketing of oil seeds and oils.
Oil seeds and edible oil scenario
Oil seed production is an important part of agricultural economy, next to food grains. The world oil seeds production stood at 387 million tones in 2007- 08 as against 371 million tones in 2008-09. The major oil seeds growing states in the country are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal 3 Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamilnadu and west Bengal. Tamilnadu is one of the major oil seeds growing states in India. It ranks sixth in the production of annual oil seed crops. Its contribution is around 9% of the country’s production. Tamilnadu is the second largest producer in the case of groundnut and coconut. Sesame, sunflower and castor are the other major oil seed crops of Tamilnadu. But the domestic production of the oil seeds is not sufficient to meet the growing demand for edible oils in the country. The gap between demand and supply is met through the import of edible oil/oil seeds. Annually around 4-5 million tons of vegetable oils are imported into the country. Although India accounts for 14% world oils seeds area coverage, yet its contribution to the total oil seeds production of the world is only to the extent of 6-7% which is largely on account of low yield realized in respect of almost all oil seed crops in the country. India exports major part of the edible oil seed to various countries like Japan, Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Holland, Germany, West Europe and USSR/Russia. The important factor is that exports to counties like Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia etc have been mainly from Southern states i.e. Tamilnadu. Indian groundnuts are available in different varieties Bolds, Javas and Red Natals which have a rich nutty flavor, sweet taste and crunchy texture and are favored by international consumers. Edible oil is one of the five nutrient elements essential for the human body. Edible oil means that oil which can be used for cooking purpose, and for increasing palatability and flavor of one’s diet. It also improves the texture of food items. It is one of the most important cooking media in the country. India is world’s fourth largest vegetable oil economy with 15,000 oil mills, 700 solvent extraction units, 250 vanaspathi (hydrogenated oil) plants and over 500 refineries, all employing over one million persons. India is a leading player in edible oils having the largest importer and the third largest consumer 4 (after China and EU). India consumes over 10 million tones of edible oils a year, an amount that is consumed by over 90% of Indian households. Tamilnadu is a leading player in edible oil being the largest importer and consumer each year. People in Tamilnadu consume edible oil throughout the year but the per capita consumption of edible oil is very low as compared to other states. It needs hardly be pointed out that the different segments of the population accustomed to use particular type of edible oil say sesame oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil and the like. In Tamilnadu, production of groundnut oils accounts for the largest proportion of the total followed by sesame oil and sunflower oil.
PRODUCTION OF OIL
Procurement of oil seeds
The oil producers obtain their raw materials either directly from the farmers or through market committees or from commission merchants. Most of the oil manufacturers are purchasing the oil seeds just for their daily requirements and some of them stock the oil seeds for one or two week requirements. While buying, they consider the oil contents of the raw materials.
Processing of oil
The oil extraction process involves different sequential operations like preparation of seeds, blending, crushing and lastly filtering and storing. The development of refining and the procedure for purifying the pressed oil have helped to produce odourless edible oil with a natural taste.
Crushing of seeds
In ancient days, people crushed oil seeds by “KALCHEKKU’. Afterwards, with the result of technological development, the “ROTARY” came into existence and later it gave way to the “EXPELLER”. But today, crushing work is mainly done by modern expellers. In case of sesame oil, Palm Jaggery is added for improving the quality and self life and also to avoid the bitter taste of the oil. Generally, sesame oil producers add molasses (water fluid obtained from sugar mill) in their process because palm jaggery is costlier than molasses. Boiler is used in the expeller machine for cooking the oil seeds. With help of expellers, oil is squeezed out and deposited in the tank which is placed in underground. Oil cake is the byproduct at the end of this process, and it is finally dispatched for sale. Oil deposited in the tank is unfiltered oil. This unfiltered oil is brought for filtering through pipelines to obtain refined golden yellow oil.
Conclusion
The oil seed sector constitutes an important determinant of agricultural economy. The demand for edible oils being highly income and price elastic, the increase in population coupled with the rise in income levels have led to ever increasing demand for edible oil in the recent years. there is a high degree of variation in annual production of oil seeds owing to their cultivation predominantly under low and uncertain rainfall situations and input starved conditions coupled with poor crop management. Sustainability of the enhanced oil seeds production is important to enhance the production. Achieving self-reliance in vegetable oil calls for new thrust for improving the productivity of oil seed crops through exploitation of untapped yield reservoir by effective technology transfer and demand driven research agenda. A favorable public policy which takes into account the interest of all section of oil seed sector is needed. All concerned with oil seed sector must contribute to the best advantage of oil seed farmers, particularly those producing these crops in the stress prone ecologies and environments.
Reference