Soybean meal exports rise six-fold in January

Soybean meal exports rose nearly six fold to 3.36 lakh tonne during January because of higher demand in global markets. In January 2020, soybean meal exports stood at 58,000 tonne, said DN Pathak, executive director at the Soybean Processors Association of India (SOPA).

The oil marketing year runs from October to September.

Pathak said Indonesia (79,375 tonne), France (70,500 tonne) and Germany (48,765 tonne) were among major importers in January this year.

The leftover product after extracting soybean oil is called soybean meal.

Pathak said soybean meal prices are competitive which are supporting exports. He expressed hope that exports could double to 18 lakh tonne in the current oil marketing year (October 2020-September 2021). In the previous oil marketing year, 8.62 lakh tonne was exported.

The association conducted a mid-term review of soybean crop for the current oil year. Teams of SOPA conducted a large-scale field survey in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, covering major soybean growing districts. Survey teams interacted with farmers, mandi officials, traders, stockiest and processors to assess the crop in kharif 2020.

Crushing has been brisk this year and exports have more than doubled compared to the previous year, said Pathak. Due to increased export demand, the association expects crushing of 95 lakh tonne this year, against 82 lakh tonne in the previous oil year.