India's New Vegetable Oil Regulation Order

New Delhi, Jul 24 (PTI) The government will notify a new order next week to regulate vegetable oil products in India with modern, transparent and technologically advanced provisions, Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra said on Thursday.

The 2025 Vegetable Oil Products, Production and Availability (VOPPA) Regulation Order will replace the existing 2011 order and emphasise enhanced monitoring of edible oil imports, production, stocks and sales through digital tools.

"The associations have been consulted. It's in the final stages now, probably by next week it will be notified," Chopra told reporters on the sidelines of the fourth edition of Indian Vegetable Oil Producers' Association (IVPA) Global Roundtable.

The new regulation makes it mandatory for the industry to report production, sales and pricing figures. "Right now we are groping in the dark because we are dependent on the association for the data," he said.

Addressing the event, the secretary said the VOPPA framework will track production, pricing and availability in real-time, providing critical data to industry stakeholders while improving compliance, market monitoring, and product integrity.

On import duty cuts in crude edible oils, Chopra said the government has implemented calibrated customs duty reductions to cushion the impact of global fluctuations and ensure affordability.

The government is monitoring market dynamics, conducting nationwide inspections and working with industry associations to ensure duty cuts are "swiftly passed on" to customers for fair price discovery across the supply chain.

While overall food inflation remains at its lowest since 2021, edible oil has seen 20-30 per cent annual inflation except groundnut oil, which remains a concern for the government.

Mustard oil prices remain firm, though government agencies like Nafed have a stock of 7 lakh tonnes of mustard seed, which should help ease pressure on rates.

Stressing on achieving self-sufficiency in domestic oilseeds and edible oil production, Chopra acknowledged significant challenges ahead.

The average yield of major oilseeds such as soybean, sunflower and mustard in India is very low compared to global averages. "It requires substantial investment in research and development, infrastructure development and adoption of modern agricultural practices," he said.

Newly developed Indian varieties demonstrate genetic potential on par with top-performing countries globally. Scaling up production through enhanced seed replacement rates and widespread distribution are crucial steps forward.

The government has launched schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana and National Mission on Edible Oils-Oilseeds to increase yields and production.

US Soybean Export Council Regional Director Kevin Roepke said no country can be self-sufficient in everything and suggested that the US has potential to increase soybean oil exports to India from current levels.

The event was attended by Godrej Industries Group Chairman and Managing Director Nadir B Godrej, IVPA President Sudhakar Desai, and ITC Ltd Agri and IT Businesses Group Head S Sivakumar.