SEA Urges Import Curbs on Edible Oils, National Mission in Budget

New Delhi, Jan 21 (PTI) Industry body SEA on Tuesday urged the government to regulate import of refined edible oils, restrict duty-free inbound shipments of finished products like soaps and noodles, and impose 5 per cent GST on de-oiled rice bran.

In its pre-budget memorandum submitted to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA) emphasised the need to launch the 'National Mission on Edible Oils' (NMEO) with increased financial support to boost oilseeds production and reduce import dependency.

The NMEO needs to be implemented with a minimum outlay of Rs 25,000 crore for the next five years against the present Rs 10,000 crore to reduce the country's dependence on imported oils to 25-30 per cent by 2029-30 from the current level of 65 per cent, it said.

"We need to invest heavily on MSP support, farmer education, seeds, agri practices and machinery, soil weather forecasting and storage, along with modernisation of processing industry," SEA added.

Expressing concern over rising refined palm oil imports, SEA said the Indian palm refining industry is suffering from very low capacity utilisation and getting transformed into mere packers due to cheap import of RBD Palmolein from Indonesia and Malaysia.

The industry body demanded an increase in import duty of RBD palmolein from the current 12.5 per cent to 15 per cent without any change in crude palm oil duty.

It also sought higher import duties on crude and refined oils to boost overall oilseeds production and reduce imports.

SEA called for curbs on large-scale import of finished products like soaps and noodles from Southeast Asian countries, mainly Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

The government should place import of finished products like stearic acid, soap noodle, oleic acid and refined glycerin under the restricted items list, it said.

SEA also demanded duty-free import of all required raw materials for oleochemical players and uniform duty on all crude edible oils.

Currently, crude rice bran oil and crude pomace oil are subject to 35 per cent basic customs duty, while crude palm oil and crude soybean oil have different rates.

The industry body sought creation of buffer stock for soybean, promotion of value-added soybean products and imposition of 5 per cent GST on de-oiled rice bran to reduce misuse.

The raw material 'rice bran' is subject to 5 per cent GST, while the finished product de-oiled rice bran attracts zero duty, it added.

SEA also demanded incentives for oilmeal exports, regulation of maize-based ethanol prices to maintain stable DDGS (Distiller's Dried Grains with Solubles) prices that don't hurt domestic consumption of oilmeals like soya and rapeseed.

It urged the government to encourage private partnership in oilseeds extension programmes and provide monetary support to set up model farms.