The decision of the US and India to end six major trade disputes at WTO is a 'big victory' and will be mutually beneficial for both countries, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. He said resumption of talks at the Trade Policy Forum has started yielding significant results.

 

India and the US have agreed to end six trade disputes at the World Trade Organization while New Delhi will also remove retaliatory customs duties on certain American products such as almonds, walnuts, and apples.

 

A joint statement issued after the meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden in Washington said the two leaders welcomed the resolution of six outstanding WTO disputes through mutually agreed solutions.

 

'It is a big victory for India and is a mutually beneficial arrangement for both countries,' Goyal told reporters here.

 

He said, now there are no pending India-US disputes at WTO.

 

On the poultry case, he said both sides are discussing it and will find a solution by end of this year.

 

'So, India and the US by the end of this year will have no disputes. All the six major ones have gone,' the minister said adding 'for the first time bilaterally we are ending the disputes.'

 

In 2015, India lost a long-pending dispute over poultry imports from the US at WTO's dispute settlement body. India had 12 months to comply with the WTO order. The US had sought trade sanctions against India in this case.

 

Goyal informed the reporters that US Trade Representative Katherine Tai will be coming to India by end of this year for next TPF meet.

 

'Before that, we will be in a position to solve that (poultry case) also,' he added.

 

Talking about the six trade disputes, he said it's a 'package deal'. The six disputes include three initiated by India and as many by the US.

 

In 2018, the US imposed 25 per cent and 10 per cent import duties on certain steel and aluminium products, respectively, on grounds of national security. In retaliation, India in June 2019 imposed customs duties on 28 American products, including chickpeas, lentils, almonds, walnuts, apples, boric acid, and diagnostic reagents. India had also filed a complaint against the US in WTO on imposing these duties.

 

On the steel and aluminium case, there were requests by Indian players to exclude certain products from the high duty list.

 

On this, the US has given 'us an assurance that at least 70 per cent of all such requests of steel, and 80 per cent of all such requests for aluminium applications for products originating in India will be excluded from the additional process of Section 232 (of a US law)'.

 

In 2018, then US President Donald Trump had imposed these duties using Section 232 of an act that permits the president to restrict imports.

 

The six disputes include countervailing measures on certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products from India, certain measures relating to solar cells and modules, measures relating to the renewable energy sector, export-related measures, certain measures on steel and aluminium products, and additional duties on some products from the US.

 

According to trade experts, both countries can resolve the disputes on mutually agreed terms and later inform the Geneva-based WTO about the same.

 

On April 12, 2012, India requested consultations with the United States with regard to the imposition of countervailing duties by the US on certain hot rolled carbon steel flat products from India. New Delhi had claimed that the countervailing duty investigation and related measures are inconsistent with WTO trade norms.

 

On February 6, 2013, the US requested consultations with India concerning certain measures of India relating to domestic content requirements under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission for solar cells and solar modules. America claimed that the measures appear to be inconsistent with global trade provisions.

 

Similarly, on September 9, 2016, India requested consultations under the aegis of the WTO with the US regarding certain measures of the US relating to domestic content requirements and subsidies instituted by the governments of the states of Washington, California, Montana, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Michigan, Delaware and Minnesota, in the energy sector.

 

On March 14, 2018, the US asked for consultations with India concerning certain alleged export subsidy measures of New Delhi under Merchandise Export from India Scheme (MEIS), Export Oriented Units (EOU), Electronics Hardware Technology Parks (EHTP), Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG). The WTO dispute panel ruled against India, and New Delhi in 2019 appealed against the ruling at the appellate body.

 

On May 18, 2018, India requested consultations with the US concerning certain measures imposed by America to allegedly adjust imports of steel and aluminium into the US. India had claimed that these measures appear to be inconsistent with the WTO rules.

 

Similarly on July 3, 2019, the US asked for consultations under the WTO dispute settlement mechanism with India regarding India's imposition of additional duties with respect to certain products originating in the US.

 

The US is the largest trading partner of India. In 2022-23, the bilateral goods trade increased to USD 128.8 billion as against USD 119.5 billion in 2021-22.

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal lauded the support and encouragement provided to exporters by ECGC Ltd. Addressing the media in New Delhi today, the Minister emphasized the importance of transparency and simplification of procedures and said that all the procedures at ECGC Ltd. will be made completely digital in the next few months. The Minister said that the digitisation of processes at ECGC will enhance the convenience for the exporters. Shri Goyal also said that a new grievance redressal mechanism at ECGC Ltd. will be established where a Live video-conference facility will be available daily for one hour on the website of ECGC Ltd. 

 

Last year ECGC Ltd. extended cover under Export Credit Insurance for banks (ECIB) scheme for the accounts with export credit working capital limits up to Rs. 20 crore sanctioned by the banks (excluding Traders and GJD Exporters) with enhanced cover of 90%. Four banks namely SBI, Central Bank of India (CBI), Bank of Maharashtra and Saraswat Bank have so far opted for the enhanced cover. The experience under the cover has been satisfactory in terms of low default ratio in the last one year. Shri Goyal said that the extended cover under the scheme has resulted in easing of interest rates on the credit/loans obtained from the banks.

 

The Minister announced that the benefit of the enhanced cover will be extended to the accounts with limits up to Rs. 50 crore for above four banks without any additional cost. It is expected that around 3000 exporter-borrower accounts will benefit from this.

 

For nine banks where six-year claim to premium ratio (CPR) is less than 70%, cover for accounts with export credit working capital limits up to Rs. 20 crore will be offered enhanced cover of 90% without any additional cost provided the banks are extending the export credit at an interest rate corresponding to the accounts rated ‘AA’ (or with equivalent rating). Around 3000 exporter- borrower accounts will be supported by the enhanced cover under WT-ECIB for such banks. This product was first of its kind in the export credit insurance industry all across the globe. The product facilitates the borrower accounts to be treated equivalent to ‘AA’ rated accounts with reduced cost of export credit to the exporters.

 

ECGC Ltd. will provide enhanced cover under the policy covers (providing protection against commercial and political risks on account of the overseas buyers) issued to the exporters in the policies available for sale in all the channels. 100% cover will be provided for existing policyholders where ‘No Claim Bonus (NCB)’ is 50% and the policy proposal has been received directly from the exporters and not through insurance brokers. 5% additional cover under the policies will be given where the proposal is received directly from the exporter and not through insurance brokers.

 

During FY 2022-23, ECGC Ltd. supported more than 16,000 exporters with an aggregate value of business covered to the tune of Rs.6.68 lakh crore. CMD, ECGC Shri M. Senthilnathan said that the business covered value is expected to increase to more than Rs.10 lakh crore in the current FY.

 

ECGC Ltd. envisages to provide claim and other insurance related services to exporters and banks digitally after implementation of the upgraded software system (ERP system) which is likely to be implemented within the next six months.

 

ECGC Ltd., a premier Export Credit Agency (ECA) of the Government of India, was set up in 1957 under the Companies Act to promote exports from India by providing export credit insurance services to exporters and banks. It functions under the administrative control of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Over the years, the Company has designed different export credit risk insurance products to suit the requirements of Indian exporters to protect them against credit risk involved in exports. The Company also provides insurance to commercial banks extending export working capital loans to exporters. The products to banks are aimed at ensuring availability of adequate and affordable working capital for exporters. The products to exporters help them in retaining the existing markets in addition to expanding exports to new and emerging markets by extending adequate credit to buyers.

Chairman and Managing Director, Food Corporation of India, Shri Ashok K. K. Meena said that the Government has now directed the FCI to conduct the e-auctions of wheat and rice to check the inflationary trends in prevailing retail prices as a part of market intervention to control the price of wheat and rice. Shri Meena said this while addressing the media today in New Delhi.

 

The base price of wheat has been been kept at the same level at Rs. 2150/qtl for FAQ and Rs. 2125/qtl for URS wheat. In order to control the hoarding of wheat, the Government has decided that the declaration in the Wheat Stock Monitoring System portal is mandatory for participation in the auctions. In addition to this, in order to identify the genuine processors and traders, the valid FSSAI License has also been made mandatory for participation. 

 

The maximum quantity that a buyer can bid for is limited to 100 MTs in this e-auction. To accommodate the small wheat processors and traders, the minimum quantity has been kept to 10 MTs. Further, to accommodate the small and marginal traders and processors of wheat, the EMD for participation in the e-auctions has also been reduced by 50% from the earlier levels. 

 

The bidding is also limited to the local buyers by ensuring that the GST registration of the State is mapped and checked before stocks are released. These measures are taken to ensure a wider local reach for the stocks offered in a particular State. 

 

4 LMT of wheat is being offered in the 1st e-auction from 457 depots across the country. 271 fresh empanelment of buyers were done after 01.04.2023. There are 2093 active empanelled bidders as on date.

 

The e-auction for rice under Open Market Sale Scheme (Domestic) would commence from 5th July, 2023. The base price of Rice is Rs 3100/qtl. 

 

6 weekly e-auctions of wheat were conducted by FCI till 15.03.2023. Total quantity of 33.7 LMT wheat was offloaded and the prices of Wheat came down by 19% due to this massive intervention in a span of 45 days. Due to the Rabi Procurement period of Wheat, the market intervention was suspended. 

The PM-Kisan Mobile App with Face Authentication Feature was launched by Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Shri Narendra Singh Tomar under the central government's ambitious and popular scheme for income support to farmers 'Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi'. Best example of modern technology using Face Authentication Feature from this app farmer can complete e-KYC remotely, sitting at home easily by scanning face without OTP or fingerprint and helped 100 other farmers to do e-KYC at their home. Recognizing the need to make e-KYC mandatory, the Government of India has extended the ability of farmers to perform e-KYC to officers of state governments, so that each officer can complete the e-KYC process for 500 farmers.

 

Thousands of farmers present in Krishi Vigyan Kendras across the country, as well as officers of the Central and State Governments and representatives of various government agencies and agricultural organizations were virtually connected to the event held at Krishi Bhavan, New Delhi. On this occasion, Union Minister Shri Tomar said that Prime Minister Kisan Samman Nidhi is a very comprehensive and ambitious scheme of the Government of India, in the implementation of which the state governments have performed their role very diligently, as a result of which we are in a position to pay the installment of the scheme about 8.5 crore farmers after KYC. The more refined this platform the more it will be useful for PM-Kisan and whenever any benefit has to be given to the farmers, complete data will be available with the Central and State Governments, so that no problem can arise in data verification.

 

Shri Tomar stated that PM-Kisan is an innovative scheme whose benefits are being given by the central government to the farmers without any middlemen. Today, it has become possible to give benefits to such a large number of farmers only with the help of technology. No one can question the implementation of this entire scheme which is a very important achievement. The work has become much easier by using technology the GoI developed this App. The Government of India has made all the necessary facilities available to the states, now if the states work more quickly, then we will reach to all the beneficiaries and achieve the set target.

 

Union Minister Shri Tomar said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has been continuously insisting that if sufficient funds are available for the scheme, then we have reached saturation. Work is going on in this direction in other states including Uttar Pradesh and on completion of which, maximum number of eligible farmers will be able to get the 14th installment of the scheme. Shri Tomar requested that all the state governments should act in this regard.

 

In the program, Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Shri Kailash Choudhary said that the agriculture sector is benefiting from technology and the new facility of this app will also provide a lot of convenience to the farmers. Union Agriculture Secretary Shri Manoj Ahuja also kept his views. Additional Secretary Shri Pramod Kumar Mehrada explained the features of the app. The program was coordinated by the departmental advisor Shri Manoj Kumar Gupta. On this occasion, officials of state governments also shared their experiences related to the benefits of scheme and app. Efforts will also be made to connect more and more farmers with the app through the youth and on the basis of the prescribed criteria, certificates will be given by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare to the youth who help in this.

 

PM Kisan is one of the world's largest DBT schemes in which farmers get Rs 6,000 directly transferred through Aadhaar  linked bank accounts in three installments in a year. 2.42 lakh crore has been transferred to the accounts of more than 11 crore farmers, of whom more than 3 crore were women. PM Kisan Yojana proved to be a strong partner for the farmers even during the lockdown at the time of covid. The scheme has ensured necessary facilities by providing direct financial assistance to the farmers and has given them confidence in difficult times. Now the difficulties related to Aadhaar verification and bank account details updation on PM Kisan Portal have been resolved by effective use of digital public goods.

 

For the first time, it is seen that more than 8.1 crore farmers were successfully paid the 13th installment of PM Kisan directly into their Aadhaar linked bank accounts through Aadhaar Enabled Payment only, which is a record in itself. The new app is very easy to use and easily available for download on the Google Play Store. The app will also provide very important information related to the scheme and PM Kisan accounts to the farmers. In this, farmers can know the status of landseeding, linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts and e-KYC using the No User Status Module. The department has also roped in India Post Payment Bank (IPPB) to open Aadhaar linked bank accounts for beneficiaries at their doorstep and asked CSCs to organize village-level e-KYC camps with the help of States/UTs.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), is conducting a three-week induction training programme, ‘Nurturing Individual Potential and Unleashing Networking’ (NIPUN), for its newly recruited officials. The recently opened National Training Centre was officially inaugurated by Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, on May 31, 2023.

 

This is the first step towards enhancing staff training and capacity building for food safety officials, designated officers, and staff members.

 

The 6th NIPUN was inaugurated by G Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO, FSSAI, at the National Training Centre for Food Safety and Standards, Ghaziabad. While welcoming the newly hired officials. Rao said, 'Your role is pivotal in maintaining food safety and quality which will impact the lives of 140 crore people.'He added that this training will help enhance the skills and knowledge about the food safety ecosystem of the country.

 

FSSAI has trained more than 11 lakh food handlers and FBOs as Food Safety Supervisors since 2017, with an average rate of 2 lakh trainees per year. With more than 72 lakh FBOs in the country, FSSAI is gearing up to train 25 lakh food handlers and FBOs in the next three years, beginning with the current financial year.

 

NIPUN is a flagship induction training programme for direct recruits of FSSAI. The programme design comprising three weeks of classroom training followed by on-the-job exposure to the functioning of FSSAI at regional offices is envisaged to sensitise the direct recruits to the paramount mandate of the apex food regulator.

 

This training programme aims at fostering fundamental knowledge about food safety and standards, as well as an understanding of the organisational structure of FSSAI, including the Food Authority, Central Advisory Committee, scientific panels/committees, and the general aspects of food safety in terms of products, practices, value chain, and ecosystem. The programme will feature various technical sessions covering topics such as Indian Food Laws, Standardisation, Quality Assurance, Regulatory Compliance, Codex, Food Imports, and more. Additionally, it will cover administrative aspects, including rules, benefits and claims, office procedures, public procurement and financial rules, conduct and discipline rules, and e-office.

 

A group of 52 recently recruited deputy directors, food analysts, and technical officers will undergo this three-week programmes at the National Training Centre for Food Safety and Standards in Ghaziabad. Following the programme, they will receive two weeks of on-the-job training at the Southern Regional office in Chennai and the Northern Regional office in Ghaziabad.

India and the US on Thursday said they will be looking forward to reconvening of the India-US Trade Policy Forum later this year to further enhance trade relationship and identify new areas for engagement.

 

The two countries have also taken steps towards deepening bilateral cooperation to strengthen economic relationship, including trade ties, according to a joint statement issued after a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden.

 

'The US-India trade and investment partnership is an engine for global growth, with bilateral trade exceeding USD 191 billion in 2022, nearly doubling from 2014,' it said.

 

Prime Minister Modi and President Biden also applauded the reconvening of the US-India Commercial Dialogue and CEO Forum in March in New Delhi, according to the statement.

 

They have encouraged respective industries to take action on the recommendations from CEOs for greater engagement and technical cooperation to build resilient supply chains for emerging technologies, clean energy technologies, and pharmaceuticals; promote an innovative digital economy; lower barriers to trade and investment; harmonise standards and regulations wherever feasible; and work towards skilling of workforces, it said.

 

'The leaders support continued for active engagement between the US Treasury Department and the Indian Ministry of Finance under the Economic and Financial Partnership dialogue,' the joint statement said.

 

They encouraged the US Federal Insurance Office and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India to advance in areas of mutual interest in the insurance sector under their existing MoU framework, it said.

 

Prime Minister Modi and President Biden have committed their administrations to promoting policies and adapting regulations that facilitate greater technology sharing, co-development, and co-production opportunities between the US and Indian industry, government, and academic institutions, the statement said.

 

They also welcomed the launch of the interagency-led Strategic Trade Dialogue in June and directed both sides to undertake regular efforts to address export controls, explore ways of enhancing high technology commerce, and facilitate technology transfer between the India and the US.

 

The statement said Modi and Biden welcomed Air India's historic agreement with Boeing to acquire more than 200 US-made aircraft. This purchase, it said, will support more than one million US jobs across 44 states and contribute to ongoing efforts to modernise the civil aviation sector in India.

 

Boeing has announced a USD 100 million investment on infrastructure and programmes to train pilots in India, supporting India's need for 31,000 new pilots over the next 20 years.

 

The leaders also welcomed Boeing's announcement of its completion of a C-17 aftermarket support facility for MRO and a new parts logistics centre in India to capture future synergies between defence and civil aviation.

 

'India highlighted its interest in the restoration of its status under the US Generalised System of Preferences programme, which could be considered in relation to eligibility criteria determined by the US Congress. The leaders supported intensifying the work to advance progress on issues related to the eligibility criteria,' the statement said.

 

Prime Minister Modi also expressed India's interest towards being recognised as a Trade Agreements Act-designated country by the US to further enhance the integration of both economies and to further promote trade and investment between the two countries.

 

In this regard, the leaders welcomed the initiation of discussions between both sides at an official level on issues related to bilateral government procurement, it said.

 

The leaders are committed to pursuing ambitious efforts to strengthen Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to address shared global challenges of the 21st century, according to the statement.

 

'By the G20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, the United States and India will work together to secure G20 commitment to create a major new dedicated pool of funds at the World Bank to deploy concessional lending for global challenges, and to enhance support for crisis response in International Development Association recipient countries,' the statement said.

 

Noting the developments, Chief Executive at General Atomics Global Corporation Vivek Lall said, 'We are very happy to note that Prime Minister Modi and President Biden have significantly enhanced the defense relationship between the two countries by announcing the decision to acquire MQ9B for the Indian armed forces.' 'This is a breakthrough moment for India-US strategic and defence partnership and General Atomics is pleased to be a major contributor in taking it to the next level,' Lall said.

 

Prime Minister Modi is visiting the US from June 21-24 at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden. PTI NKD MJH CS .

The Solvent Extractors’ Association (SEA) of India, which has been supporting the establishment of model farms for rape-mustard and castor, now has similar plans for groundnut also.

 

The managing committee of SEA, which met on June 16, has decided to establish 100-150 model groundnut farms in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan during the current season.

 

In his monthly letter to members, Ajay Jhunjhunwala, President of SEA of India, said groundnut is a major crop and needs more attention for productivity.

 

'Considering our experience for castor and mustard model farm projects, the Managing Committee at the meeting held on June 16, 2023, decided to extend the model farm project for groundnut,' he said.

 

Urging stakeholders to support the project financially, he said the contribution qualifies as CSR (corporate social responsibility) activity under Section 135 of the Companies Act 2013.

 

Stating that SEA and Solidaridad were working on rape-mustard model farms for the last four years, he said the results were quite encouraging with increases in productivity.

 

Referring to the SEA team’s meeting with Manoj Ahuja, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare, in New Delhi in June, Jhunjhunwala said he had appreciated SEA’s role in promoting mustard model farms.

 

Ahuja also desired to know the names of companies interested in setting up oil palm plantation in the North-East, and asked the association to prepare a note on the challenges and opportunity in oil palm plantation from industry’s point of view. Ahuja also agreed to support the visit of a delegation of interested companies to the North-East to explore the opportunity, he said.

 

MSP

Welcoming the government’s decision to increase the MSP (minimum support price) for kharif crops, he said the government must buy at MSP. Currently, rapeseed is quoted at Rs.5,100 a quintal against the MSP of Rs.5,450 a quintal. Stating that mustard farmers were totally discouraged, he said it was quoted at Rs.7,000-7,500 a quintal at the time of sowing.

 

In Haryana, sunflower seed price has fallen much below the MSP of Rs.6,400 a quintal, leading to protests by farmers.

 

This may result in lower acreage under soya in kharif and mustard in rabi and overall production of oilseeds, he said.

 

Thai palm

Referring to the recent visit of BV Mehta, Executive Director of SEA, Suresh Motwani, General Manager (Oilseeds) of Solidaridad, and Kailash Singh, Managing Director of Tefla, to Thailand to understand its palm oil complex, Jhunjhunwala said Thai CPO (crude palm oil) producers and exporters are keen to develop direct rapport with Indian importers and refiners. SEA is expecting a delegation from Thailand to attend the annual general meeting of SEA and Globoil India during September 28-30.

 

At the invitation of the Thai government, SEA plans to depute a trade delegation during the last week of August to study Thai palm oil complex and develop direct rapport with producers and exporters, he said.

India and the United States have agreed to end six trade disputes at the World Trade Organisation and New Delhi will also lift retaliatory customs duties on 28 American products.

 

This is likely to shore up trade between the nations and also help Indian exporters get key tax advantages.

 

The decisions come amid Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's State Visit to the US at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden.

 

The US, in 2018, had imposed 25 per cent and 10 per cent import taxes on certain steel and aluminium products, respectively, on grounds of national security. In retaliation, India in June 2019 imposed customs duties on 28 American products, including chickpeas, lentils, almonds, walnuts, apples, boric acid, and diagnostic reagents.

 

United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai today announced that the United States and the Republic of India have agreed to terminate six outstanding disputes at the World Trade Organization. 'India also agreed to remove retaliatory tariffs which it had imposed in response to the Section 232 national security measures on steel and aluminium,' Tai said on Thursday.

 

It added that these tariff cuts will restore and expand market opportunities for US agricultural producers and manufacturers.

 

'Today's agreement represents the culmination of intensified bilateral engagement over the last two years, including through the US-India Trade Policy Forum, to deepen our economic and trade ties,' Tai said.

 

'As a result of our work, US agricultural producers and manufacturers will now enjoy renewed access to a critical global market and we will strengthen our trade relationship with one of our closest partners. I look forward to continuing to work with my counterpart, (India's Commerce and Industry) Minister (Piyush) Goyal, as we identify additional ways to bring our people and our economies together,' she added.

 

The six disputes include three initiated by India and as many by the US.

 

These include countervailing measures on certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products from India, certain measures relating to solar cells and modules, measures relating to the renewable energy sector, export-related measures, certain measures on steel and aluminium products, and additional duties on some products from the US.

 

According to trade experts, both countries can resolve the disputes on mutually agreed terms and later inform the Geneva-based WTO about the same.

 

The US had filed a complaint in the WTO about India's support measures to its export sector under different schemes. In 2019, a WTO dispute panel ruled that India's export measures are inconsistent with global trade norms.

 

The US is the largest trading partner of India. In 2022-23, the bilateral goods trade increased to USD 128.8 billion as against USD 119.5 billion in 2021-22.

 

According to WTO rules, a member country can file a case in the Geneva-based multilateral body if they feel that a particular trade measure is against the norms of the world body. Bilateral consultation is the first step to resolving a dispute. If both sides are not able to resolve the matter through consultation, either of them can approach the establishment of a dispute settlement panel.

 

The panel's ruling or report can be challenged by WTO's appellate body.

 

Interestingly, the appellate body is not functioning because of differences among member countries to appoint its members. Several disputes are already pending with this body. The US has been blocking the appointment of the members.

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.  

Help with transitioning to organic farming and better marketing as well as market access are the key issues that need to be tackled to scale up organic farming in the country, the latest report of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), 'Market Access for Organic and Natural Produce', says.

 

While transition is getting more traction of late, the report says, not much effort is afoot to create better markets. 'Most ongoing initiatives focus on the transition through capacity-building and incentives. But a lot needs to be done to provide better markets through a structured approach,' said Amit Khurana, director, sustainable food systems programme, CSE on June 21, in a webinar organised to release the report.

 

The report includes six selected case studies from three key stakeholder groups - farmer-producer organisations (FPO), retail corporations and state governments, he added.

 

Speaking on the occasion, Rajashekar Reddy Seelam, founder and managing director of Sresta Natural Bioproducts Private Ltd, Hyderabad, said building trust in organic produce by ensuring that only genuine items is marketed is essential for the success of the sector.

 

Explaining the strategy, Seelam said, 'Farmers are at the core of our business. Initially it was difficult to convince farmers to adopt organic farming as during the first three-to-four years yield reduces. Benefits are visible only later.

 

Keeping this in mind, we identify a location where farmers are pro-organic or use less chemicals. We have 100-plus trained field associates stationed in our project team to guide and support farmers and agronomists in the system.'

 

G V Ramanjaneyulu, executive director of Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, Hyderabad, who is also in the board of Sahaja Aharam Producer Company Limited, a federation of 19 FPOs, talked about the role of FPOs in scaling up organic farming.

 

'FPOs certainly help, more so if federated, as they have the potential to augment resources, help more farmers grow food organically, leverage technology, bring efficiency in systems and help farmers earn more through shorter supply chains by bringing producer and consumer together,' he said.

 

Sahaja, formed in 2014, helps over 9,000 farmers in 11 districts in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to grow food organically at low cost. It is also part of the six case studies featured in the CSE report.

 

Meanwhile, Akash Badave, CEO of Bhoomgadi Organic Farmers Produce Company, Chhattisgarh, said his FPO managed to find its unique selling point in the products growing exclusively in the remote Dhantewade region of Chhattisgarh.

 

The CSE report elaborates on how Bhoomgadi helped over 2,700 organic farmers from 122 villages overcome market-access limitations due to their remoteness.

 

Addressing the webinar, Badave stressed that consumer education is crucial to take the organic movement forward. 'We need to intensely work with the consumers. Actually, that is going to be the key. A lot of work until now has been done with the farmers. Now, we need to work very closely with the consumers, aggregating consumers, changing the behaviour, changing the attitudes and expectations,' added Badave.

 

For Dinesh Balam, state coordinator of Odisha Millet Mission, which was among the case studies done for the CSE report, there is no point in trying to redesign a system without specifically addressing the existing problems.

 

'When it comes to millet, one of the criticisms is that millets are not cleaned properly. There's always mud on the surface of ragi, for instance. To address this, we looked at the institutions that are there at village-level that can help farmers to ensure proper cleaning post harvesting. Every village has women self-help group. So, what we do in our programme is that we empower these women to run post-harvesting centres. We supply them the needed equipment so farmers can process post harvesting at village level. The other question when it comes to millet is that how we increase household consumption. In Odisha, we engage women's groups again to create an awareness among end users.'

 

Manoj Gupta, principal extension specialist, state project implementing unit of Prakritik Kheti Khushhal Kisan Yojana (PK3Y), Himachal Pradesh, said one of the things that they realised during the implementation of their programme is that there is a need to simplify certifications, as too many confuse consumers.

 

The CSE report also highlights how PK3Y Himachal has come up with a simpler certification system specifically for natural farming. According to Gupta, Himachal tried to make a certification methodology that is also scalable with other certification systems operational at the national and international level. This self-assessed certification mechanism (Certified Evaluation Tool for Agriculture Resource Analysis-Natural) has been made accessible through a web portal since October 2022, he added.

 

'More than 11,000 farmers have submitted the information online and around 6,000 farmers have been certified by the online platform created for this innovative certification,' said Gupta.

 

The report also has a chapter on BigBasket, an online supermarket that sells products from 70 different organic brands, including its own BB Royal Organic and BB Fresho Organic.

 

The event was attended not only by farmers and FPOS, but also other stakeholders involved in organic farming. 'Consumer awareness and Direct-to-Consumer channels need to be developed to help farmers get a better price realisation,' farm-to-fork professional Bhisham Thakkar pointed out during the session.

 

Thangapandian, who runs the NGO Farm India in Trichy, which pushes for collective farming as well as teaches enterprise skills to farmers, said the biggest takeaway from the report is that if the farmers want to get a good price for their produce, be it in organic or even chemical farming, they have to band together as collectives.

 

'It is impossible for small farmers especially, to expect a fair price for the products if they are standing alone,' Thangapandian said.