30 Percent of India’s Edible Oil Consumption from GM Sources

Around 30% of India’s estimated yearly consumption of edible oils comes from sources, which are directly or indirectly produced from genetically-modified (GM) crops according to experts, the Business Standard reported on December 07.  These include both imported oils and domestically produced cottonseed oil, bulk of which are produced from GM cotton, trade and industry sources said.

A senior industry official explained that India’s average annual consumption of edible oils is around 23 million MT. Of this, 10-11 million MT comes from domestic sources which are largely GM-free except for cottonseed oil, whose production is around 1.0-1.1 million MT per year.  Bulk of imported edible oils, around 8 MT per year, is palm oil which is fully GM-free.  

However, the remaining imported edible oils, which are soybean oil and sunflower oil, come largely from seed produced using GM technology.  “So, it can be said that out of the total annual domestic edible oil consumption of around 23 million MT, roughly 5-7 million MT is from GM sources,” said BV Mehta, director general of Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA).