‘Sustainable practices to help boost castor oil exports to $2.5 bn by 2030’

New Delhi: India’s castor oil exports are increasing, and promoting sustainable standards in the farming of the commodity would help the shipments touch $2.5 billion by 2030, SCA said on Sunday.

Sustainable Castor Association (SCA) Director Abhay Udeshi said they are promoting adoption of the “SuCCESS Code” among farmers as it can help them restore soil health.

The SuCCESS Code is an independently auditable code for castor farming that aims to improve sustainability.

“There is a huge demand for castor oil in the global markets. We are looking at an export of $2.5 billion by 2030. Use of these codes will help farmers increase production and their income,” Udeshi, who is also Jayant Agro chairman, said.

Castor oil is used for a number of industrial applications including paints, varnish, resins, and plasticizers.

During April-December this fiscal, the export stood at Rs 6,195.54 crore (about $715 million). It was Rs 8,055.12 crore (around $one billion) in 2023-24. Gujarat and Rajasthan are the main castor seed growing states.

He said India is the world’s largest producer and exporter of castor oil and the world market depends on India to supply for the global needs. The major export destinations include China, France, Germany, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, Mexico, Russia and Singapore.

Udeshi said the European Union is coming up with high standards and “we have to comply with that” to increase exports.

Last week in Mumbai, the SCA organised an international roundtable on the sustainability issues of the sector.

The roundtable was attended by more than 100 participants from across the globe.

SuCCESS-certified farms, he said, have demonstrated benefits such as cost reduction, crop yield increase, and increase in overall farmer income compared to conventional farming. “We are energized and excited to bring this benefit to more farmers and more global customers. It is a win-win scenario for everyone,” he added.