Soybean Cultivation Area Shrinks, Maize Gains

Indore, Aug 14 (PTI) The area of soybean cultivation in the country in the current kharif season has shrunk by around three lakh hectares to 115 lakh hectares as compared to last year's 118.32 lakh hectares, the Soybean Processors Association of India (SOPA) has said in its estimate.
A senior official of the association attributed this decline in the cultivation area mainly to many traditional soybean growers switching to maize cultivation.
The Indore-based body released its survey report based on the current status of the crop as of August 13.
According to the report, Madhya Pradesh has sown soybean over 48.64 lakh hectares of area, Maharashtra 48.20 lakh hectares, Rajasthan about nine lakh hectares, Karnataka 4.22 lakh hectares, Gujarat 2.73 lakh hectares, Telangana 1.42 lakh hectares, Chhattisgarh 13,500 hectares and other states around 79,000 hectares.
Talking to PTI on Thursday, SOPA executive director D N Pathak said, "In some key soybean-producing areas, several farmers preferred maize this time, while continuous rainfall in some other areas prevented soybean sowing. This directly impacted the acreage."
He said maize cultivation is attracting farmers due to earnings from ethanol production and a byproduct, Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS), used in feed for cattle, pigs and poultry.
Pathak said the overall condition of the soybean crop in the country is currently normal, though yields will depend on weather conditions over the next 60 days.
The Centre has fixed the minimum support price (MSP) of soybean at Rs 5,328 per quintal for the 2025-26 kharif marketing season, up by Rs 436 from Rs 4,892 per quintal last season.