Other Tree based Oil seed crops : Sunflower Castor Sesame Groundnut Soyabean Coconut

Source : http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/karnataka-toregulate-cultivation-production-processing-of-oil-palm/article4974238.ece

Karnataka to regulate cultivation, production, processing of oil palm

Bangalore, July 31: A bill to provide for the regulation of cultivation, production and processing of oil palm and related matters was passed in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Wednesday providing for constitution of a price fixation committee, among other things. Piloting The Karnataka Oil Palm (Regulation of Cultivation, Production and Processing) Bill, 2013, Minister for Agriculture Marketing and Horticulture Shamanoor Shivashankarappa said since fresh fruit bunches of oil palm have to be processed within 24 hours of plucking to extract oil, a close coordination between the grower and processor is necessary. The bill provides for assuring the grower sale of his produce and payment for sale of such produce, constitution of a project management team to take measures regarding development of oil palm cultivation through implementation of programme of oil palm development, and a price fixation committee to ensure the grower reasonable price for oil palm fresh fruit bunches. It also provides for appointment of Oil Palm Commissioner to coordinate activities of oil palm growers and the industries engaged in processing oil palm, and declaration of factory zone for the purpose of ensuring regular supply of fresh oil palm fruit bunches to the factory situated in the zone.

In addition to registration of oil palm growers,the bill provides for payment of compensation to oil palm growers by entrepreneur on account of failure to buy oil palm fresh fruit bunches by the entrepreneur or occupier of factory. It was noted that in order to meet the growing demand for edible oils, oil palm was identified as a suitable crop for cultivation in the country in view of its high oil yielding capacity. Karnataka is one of the states wherein the oil palm project has been taken up with the Government of India assistance. (This article was published on July 31, 2013)

Source : http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/oil-palm-billpassed/article4976147.ece

Oil palm Bill passed

The Legislative Assembly on Wednesday passed the Karnataka Oil Palm (Regulation of Cultivation, Production and Processing) Bill, 2013, to set up a price fixation committee to ensure the grower reasonable prices for oil palm fresh fruit bunches. Minister for Agricultural Marketing and Horticulture Shamanur Shivashankarappa introduced the Bill and said it proposes to assure the grower sale of his produce and payment for sale of the produce. The Bill envisages constitution of a project management committee to take measures on development of oil palm cultivation through implementation of a programme in the State; appointment of Oil Palm Commissioner to co-ordinate activities of oil palm growers and the industries engaged in processing oil palm; and for exercising such powers as are indicated by this Act. Factory zone It also aims at declaring a factory zone for the purpose of ensuring regular supply of fresh oil palm bunches to the factory situated in the zone, registration of oil palm growers and proposer implementation of the oil palm programme. Compensation The Bill that has been passed envisages payment of compensation to the growers by entrepreneurs on account of the failure to buy oil palm fresh fruit bunches by the occupier of the factory.

Source : http://www.horticulture.kar.nic.in/Design_final/oilpalm/oilpalm.html#Potential_Area_and_Partn ers_Participation

Oil Palm Development Program is jointly sponsored by Govt. of India and Govt. of Karnataka, in which the fund sharing pattern is 75:25 respectively. Under this program, the farmers are being encouraged to take up oil palm cultivation by extending various kinds of assistance such as input subsidy (in the form of fertilizers), planting material subsidy, assistance for purchase of Diesel Pump-set, Leaf Chopping Machine, Weed cutter, Harvesting tools, Alluminium ladder (for harvesting of bunches), for installing Drip irrigation and drilling of new bore-wells in their oil palm plantation. The farmers are also taken on tour for training regarding oil palm cultivation

Edible oil status in the country

Why Oil Palm Potential Area and Partners Participation An Over view of Area expansion under Oil Palm in the State Monitoring mechanism

Edible oil status in the country

The demand for edible oil in the country is 14 million MT the production is only 7.0 million MT. The balance 7 million MT of edible oil is imported valued at Rs.28000 crores. Edible oil consumption is projected to grow at 6% per annum.

Why Oil plam?

Highest edible oil yielding crop (4.5 Mt/ ha.). Small farmers irrigated crop.Perennial revenue yielding crop (5 to 35 yrs). Eco-friendly less labour intensive crop.Highly nutritive oil with rich in Vit-A & E.

Potential Area and Partners Participation

An Over view of Area expansion under Oil Palm in the State

Monitoring mechanism
PROJECT MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

Its a high level Committee constituted under the Chairmanship of Principal Secretary, Horticulture Dept. The Committee comprises of representative from Govt. of India (ISOPOM division), Directorate of Oil Palm Research (DOPR), State Govt. Planning and Finance Dept. The main function of the Committee is to meet once in 3 -4 months and review the progress under the project and to take administrative decisions for speedy implementation of the project.

PRICE FIXATION COMMITTEE

Its a committee constituted with a main objective to decide the price of oil palm produce (Fresh Fruit Bunches - FFBs). The Committee is headed by Principal Secretary, Horticulture dept., the companies and the selected farmer representative are the members.

The Additional Director of Horticulture, Oil Palm is the Member Secretary to both the Committees

Source : http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-districtplus/oil-palm-cultivationset-to-expand/article3637347.ece

Oil palm cultivation set to expand

SHANKAR BENNUR

Workers sort out bunches of harvested oil palm fruit

Karnataka could see a big jump in oil palm cultivation as the availability of indigenous oil palm seedlings is set to increase with the planting of seedlings produced from high-yielding mother palms (said to be ideal for the countrys climatic conditions) completed in the Kabini command area of H.D. Kote taluk in Mysore district. This is the second oil palm seed garden in the State after the one at Taraka in the taluk, which was the first to be established 18 years ago. Because of market support, subsidies, technical assistance and attractive returns, more farmers are showing interest in taking up oil palm cultivation. With almost nil investment, farmers can get returns from the third year of cultivation. Each palm plant starts bearing fruit from the third year and continues to do so for nearly 35 years. Sources in the Horticulture Department told The Hindu that scientists from the Directorate of Oil Palm Research, Pedavegi, Andhra Pradesh, had come to the Kabini oil palm seed garden to support the department in the planting of seedlings in the command area. The planting which began last month, was done on Wednesday, the sources add. According to the officials, the seed garden set up near Kabini dam is said to be the countrys first second-generation oil palm seed production centre. Unlike the Taraka seed garden, this has the potential of producing 6 to 7 lakh seedlings a year. What is important is that the seedlings produced at the Kabini garden are the high oil-yielding hybrids and the plants are dwarf in nature. The seedlings that were planted in the command area in the last several days had been produced from high-yielding mother palms which were identified during research by the oil palm experts in the department. The hybrid variety developed at Taraka garden was named Taraka, and another hybrid variety produced there, Tenara, is currently being planted. Taraka had been planted by many farmers and the results have been very encouraging, they add. Higher yield The hybrid palms that are going to be produced at the Kabini seed garden were from 125 mother palms (identified among 850 mother palms). They give more yield and the oil content will also be more, according to the Assistant Director of Horticulture (oil palm), Krishna Kumar. In the recent years, the Centre was giving thrust to opening more oil palm seed production centres in view of demand for indigenous oil palm seedlings and also to expand oil palm cultivation across the country. The oil palm seed production centres in H.D. Kote taluk are among the major centres for the production of hybrid varieties.

According to Mr. Kumar, the current demand in India is around 60 to 70 lakh seedlings a year, but presently about 18 lakh seedlings were being produced. The seedlings were primarily procured from Costa Rica, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia to meet the domestic demand. Therefore, the production of oil palm seedlings has been given top priority, he explained. The seed garden at Taraka produced nearly 4 to 5 lakh seedlings a year. Besides meeting the demand for saplings in Karnataka, seedlings were supplied through government-recognised agencies in Andhra Pradesh, Meghalaya, and Gujarat. The seedlings were supplied free to farmers as the aim is to expand the area of oil palm cultivation and reach the target set by the States. In Karnataka, oil palm cultivation was primarily promoted in five command areas, as it required adequate water. On an average, each plant needed nearly 200 litres a day. Though it is promoted in irrigated areas, it can be cultivated on rain-dependent land (only in 21 districts that are in the command area) by drilling borewells. As the cultivation is catching up fast in Mysore district, 1,600 ha had been targeted for palm cultivation in the district alone during 2012-13. Nearly 10 tonnes of oil palm can be harvested in one acre. As seedlings are given for free, the investment is almost nil. The seedlings of Taraka variety had been distributed among growers of Mysore, Mandya, Hassan and Kodagu districts. It yields 30 per cent more oil than the imported varieties and the seed is raised for 12 months to get the seedling. SHANKAR BENNUR The current demand in India is around 60 to 70 lakh seedlings a year, but only 18 lakh seedlings are being produced Source : http://www.deccanherald.com/content/227713/govt-all-set-introduce-oil.html

Govt all set to introduce oil palm cultivation in DK, Udupi

Sandhya C DSouza, Mangalore, February 16 2012, DHNS: Farmers apprehensive over scheme, say prefer rubber to oil palm The Central and State government is all set to introduce oil palm cultivation in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts as an alternate to areca crops which are hit with yellow leaf and root grub diseases. However, the farmers in the districts do not seem to be keen in

adopting oil palm cultivation in spite of the generous packages offered by the government. Under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana Oil Palm cultivation scheme 2011-12, around 250 hectares of land will be identified in the undivided DK district to cultivate oil palm. The farmers opting to grow this crop will be given financial aid of Rs 70 per sapling up to six hectares of land and aid to buy fertilisers. In the first year of cultivation, the government will give Rs 6,000 per hectare.

The Government shall also allot funds for drip irrigation, machinery required to cultivate oil palm, Rs 10,000 per hectare for inter-crop cultivation in the first three years, fund for vermincompost, pesticides, solar fencing, water pump-lines, diesel and electric pump sets and digging bore-wells. The farmers will be trained and taken on tours to have better understanding of the crop under his scheme. Speaking to Deccan Herald, DK Department of Horticulture Deputy Director Dr S Nanda says that the government will give 50 per cent subsidy and the other 50 per cent will be looked after by the farmer. At present, Godrej Agrovet Limited is surveying and identifying land. We hope to start cultivating in 50 hectares of land by March end, she says and adds that the crop will start yielding in the fourth year of its cultivation and the tree has a good life span of 35 to 50 years. We provide technical guidance to the farmers free of cost, take up the responsibility of marking the land and also give seedlings provided by the government which are nurtured in our nurseries in Belgaum, says Godrej Agrovet Limited (Belgaum) District Development Executive M N Narasimha. Survey on At present, the survey process has started in Sullia, Puttur, Bantwal, Mangalore, Moodbidre and survey shall soon start in Udupi. Godrej Agrovet Limited will also buy the oil palm fruit from the farmers at the rate fixed by the price fixation committee. Unlike areca, farmers need not bother about processing and grading. Oil palm will yield in four years whereas areca takes seven. Every tree would give at-least 250 kgs of fruit. At present, one tonne of oil palm fruit would cost Rs 7,000, says Narasimha and adds that the company will only identify the land but the option of growing the crop is left to the farmers. Skeptic farmers Arecanut in spite of all its drawbacks is a good crop, says All India Arecanut Association President Manchi Srinivas Achar.

Explaining reasons on the apprehension of the farmers in growing oil palm, he says, the present rate of new arecanut is Rs 125 to Rs 150 per kg and Rs 180 kg for old arecanut. For one acre of areca crops, farmers can expect Rs 1 to Rs 1.44 lakh annual turnover. However, oil palm may fetch only Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000 per acre. Secondly, people would prefer to grow rubber than oil palm as rubber requires less water compared to oil palm. The subsidy given by the government will be limited and farmers have to bear the additional costs. The fluctuating nature of the oil price, difficulty in extraction of palm oil, lack of buyers in the general market could be some of the reasons, says Achar and adds arecanut being a traditional crop has been more widely accepted and it takes time for farmers to accept a totally new crop. The yellow leaf disease has severely hit Sampaje and some portions of Sullia. Hence, oil palm would be a good option in these places, says Achar. Huge demand There is a demand of 120-130 lakh tonne of crude oil in the country. However, only 50 to 60 lakh tonne is produced forcing India to import 70 lakh tonne of crude oil from other nations which will cost approximately Rs 30,000 crores, says Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat CEO Dr K N Vijaypraksh. We can be self-dependent in case we grow this crop in our country. We can expect four to five tonne of crude oil per hectare, he says. In Karnataka, 11,750 hectares have been cultivated with oil palm of which 2,800 hectares is bearing fruit of 9,000 to 10,000 metric tonne per year, he says.