Tummala Seeks ₹25,000 Assured Price for Oil Palm FFBs

Telangana Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao has strongly opposed the Centre’s decision to reduce the import duty on crude palm oil, saying the move could undermine the interests of domestic oil palm farmers. He questioned the policy of encouraging states to expand oil palm cultivation while simultaneously lowering duties on imported palm oil, which could make foreign supplies more competitive. Tummala urged the Centre to reconsider the decision.

The minister said the total import duty on crude palm oil had been reduced from 16.5 per cent to 11 per cent. The decision comes at a time when Telangana has been seeking an increase in the duty to 44 per cent to provide greater protection to domestic growers. According to Tummala, cheaper imports could put downward pressure on the prices of fresh fruit bunches (FFBs) produced by Indian farmers.

He argued that the policy could weaken farmer confidence in a crop that requires significant investment over several years. Unlike seasonal crops, oil palm involves long-term expenditure on irrigation, fertilisers, maintenance and plantation development. Any frequent changes in import or market policies, he said, could expose growers to considerable uncertainty after they have already committed their resources.

Telangana has emerged as a major oil palm cultivation centre, with around 3.20 lakh acres under the crop and more than 88,000 farmers involved, Tummala said. The state is promoting cultivation through investment incentives, plantation expansion, drip irrigation, infrastructure development and support for processing units and refineries.

The minister also referred to the Centre’s National Mission on Edible Oils–Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), which seeks to increase domestic production and reduce India’s dependence on edible oil imports. He said reducing import duties while pursuing that objective could undermine the efforts of states and farmers to expand cultivation.

Telangana has sought a minimum assured price of ₹25,000 per tonne for fresh fruit bunches, a long-standing demand of oil palm growers. Tummala said farmers need greater price certainty to make the long-term crop financially sustainable.

India imports around two-thirds of its vegetable oil requirements, he noted, making the expansion of domestic oil palm cultivation important for both farmer incomes and national food security. Tummala said strengthening imports at the expense of domestic production would run counter to the broader Atmanirbhar Bharat objective.

He urged the Centre to review the duty reduction and introduce measures that provide greater price and policy stability to oil palm farmers.