The government has decided to notify a new order that improves monitoring of edible oil imports, production, stocks, and sales through digital tools.
Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra said on Thursday that the 2025 Vegetable Oil Products, Production and Availability (VOPPA) Regulation Order will replace the existing 2011 order in order to regulate vegetable oil products in India through modern, transparent, and technologically advanced provisions.
Chopra was speaking on the sidelines of the fourth edition of the Indian Vegetable Oil Producers’ Association (IVPA) Global Roundtable.
“The associations have been consulted. It’s in the final stages now, probably by next week it will be notified,” he said, adding that they are currently “groping in the dark” because of dependence on the association for the data.
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The new regulation makes it mandatory for the industry to report production, sales and pricing figures and the framework makes it possible to track this data in real-time, he informed.
The data will prove to be critical to industry stakeholders while improving compliance, market monitoring, and product integrity, the food secretary added.
Chopra also said the government has implemented calibrated customs duty reductions to cushion the impact of global fluctuations and ensure affordability while it monitors market dynamics, conducts nationwide inspections, and works with industry associations to ensure duty cuts are “swiftly passed on” to customers for fair price discovery mechanisms across the supply chain.
While overall food inflation remains at its lowest since 2021, edible oil has witnessed a rise in annual inflation to the tune of 20-30 per cent, except groundnut oil, which remains a concern for the government since it is consumed by a huge majority of the population.
Mustard oil prices, meanwhile, remain firm, although the government’s agencies, like Nafed, which have a stock of 7 lakh tonnes of mustard seed, help ease pressure on rates.
Chopra acknowledged the importance of attaining self-sufficiency in domestic oilseeds and edible oil production, adding that there were significant challenges that lay ahead.
The average yield of major oilseeds such as soybean, sunflower and mustard in India is very low compared to global averages, although newly-developed Indian varieties show genetic potential which is on par with top-performing countries globally.
“It requires substantial investment in research and development, infrastructure development and adoption of modern agricultural practices,” he said.
Scaling up production through enhanced seed replacement rates and widespread distribution are crucial steps forward, say analysts.
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, who was at the roundtable meeting, said no country can be self-sufficient in everything and that the US has the potential to increase soybean oil exports to India from current levels.
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