Govt extends restriction-free imports of refined palm oil till further orders

29 Dec 2022 Evaluate

With an aim to increase domestic supplies and bring down prices of cooking oils, the government has extended the facility of restriction-free imports of refined palm oil beyond December 31, 2022, till further orders. In June last year, the government removed import restrictions on refined palm oil till December 31, 2021, as prices of edible oils had risen sharply. Later, it was extend till December 31, 2022.

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said ‘The free import policy of items (refined bleached deodorised palm oil, refined bleached deodorised palmolein) is extended beyond December 31, 2022 until further orders’. However it added that the import is not permitted through any port in Kerala. Earlier, these imports were under the restricted category wherein an importer needed a licence or permission from DGFT for inbound shipments.

According to the industry body Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA), India saw more than two-and-a-half times increase in import of refined palm oil at 17.12 lakh tonne in the last 11 months due to lower prices in Indonesia. India, the world's leading vegetable oil buyer, imported 130.1 lakh tonne of vegetable oils during the November-September period of the ongoing 2021-22 oil year, 4 per cent higher than the year-ago period. Palm oil shipments comprise 50 per cent of the total vegetable oil imports. India imports palm oil mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia, and a small quantity of crude soft oil, including soyabean oil from Argentina. Sunflower oil is imported from Ukraine and Russia.

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