Cotton Seed Processors Want Tech Upgradation Package

Market News

Cotton Seed Processors Want Tech Upgradation Package

The 1,000-odd domestic cotton seed processers have urged the union government to come up with a Special package which can help the industry upgrade its technological base and thus encourage scientific processing of cotton seed. It has also emphasised the need for putting up a right kind of ecosystem by creating much-needed awareness among the various stakeholders of the value chain about the significance of various by products of cotton seed.

The industry has asked for incentivising both demand as well as supply side to boost the overall scenario of the industry. Currently, only 5 per cent of the total cotton seed availability is scientifically processed and this results in losses in terms of oil as well as other by-products. Most of the units at present usage plant and machinery which are very basic (traditional) in nature in the back drop of not-so-encouraging business proposition.

The cotton seed processing industry has assumed significance as the production of cotton in India has witnessed a substantial improvement in the last decade. This follows various government initiatives carried out under the centre-sponsored Technology Mission on Cotton as also cultivation of BT cotton. Cotton production went up to 39.8 million bales in 2013-14 from 24.1 million bales in 2004-05. Cotton production stood at around 38 million in 2014-15 and estimated at around 34 million for 2015-16.

It is imperative to note that cottonseed (production: 11.2 million tonnes in 2015-16) is the largest produced oil seed (in terms of tonnage) in India, higher than the production of better known oil seeds like soyabean (12 million tonnes), rape and mustard (7.8 million tonnes) and groundnut (9.9 million tonnes). Cotton seed yields about 1.5 million tonnes of edible oil, which is the third largest contributor to the domestic vegetable oil production (8.0 million tonnes) in the country, next to rape and mustard and soyabean. India imports almost 65 per cent of its edible oil consumption.

Refined cotton seed oil has emerged as the second most preferred oil for cooking due to its nutrient values. Termed 'heart oil', it contains about 50 per cent of essential poly unsaturated fatty acids as against 30 per cent in traditional oils. Cotton seed oil has high level of natural anti-oxidants that contribute to long shelf life of food items. Refined cottonseed oil has become very popular in states like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.

Cotton seed contains around 19 per cent of oil. The unscientific processing yields only around 12 per cent of oil. Currently, since just 5 per cent of the total cotton seed is scientifically processed, only 12 per cent of oil is extracted. This results in wastage of oil worth around Rs 4,050 crore as also linters worth Rs 1,100 crore and hulls of around Rs 4,000 crore. In other words, around Rs 9,000 crore worth oil and other by-products annually cannot be recovered due to traditional (non-scientific) way of processing, which involves simply mechanically crushing the seed without undergoing the process of delinting and dehulling.

Due to this primitive nature of processing, not only is the oil yield low but also the oil produced through traditional method is often inferior in quality. Besides, due to lack of proper supply of cotton seed, only 35-40 per cent of the installed processing capacity is used. Cotton seed forms around two third of seed cotton, while lint forms the remaining one third.

Cotton linters are small fibres, which are removed from seeds using delinting machines and used in the paper and chemical industries. Cotton hulls are the outer coverings of cotton seeds and primarily used to feed ruminants. Besides, hulls also find applications in industrial uses such as plastic manufacture, oil drilling (mud additive) and furfural production. Apart from these by-products, de-oiled cakes (rich in protein and other minerals) produced in the process are used as cattle and poultry feed.

"Despite being the fact that cotton seed is the largest among the vegetable oil seeds in the country, it has not been able to draw the attention of policy makers so far. Cottonseed doesn't find any place in research and development programmes initiated by any government agencies -- either under cotton or oil seed. It is high time that the government pays due attention and comes up with some concrete package that can help this industry upgrade its base in terms of technology," says Sandeep Bajoria, chairman of All India Cottonseed Crushers' Association (AICOSCA) which has also been trying to popularize usage of cotton seed oil in the country.

While addressing the 56th annual general meeting of the apex association in Mumbai recently, Bajoria expressed the need for a comprehensive policy framework which can address the various issues of the processing industry in a time bound manner. The redressal of issues will help set up a strong base for cotton seed processing and thus help the cotton farmers to boost their overall income from the cotton production which is facing tough competition from other crops.

"There is need to create awareness about the benefits of various components of cottonseed, including oil, among various stakeholders. While the acceptance of cotton seed oil has grown exceptionally well in recent years, the usage of by-products calls for proper attention. Due to lack of awareness, a large portion of the by-products are left unused," adds Bajoria.

Even as the government has done hardly anything to promote the processing industry, AICOSCA has formed a Development Fund to propagate scientific processing of cotton seed. The fund receives from the contributions by the members is used for various activities, including organising awareness programmes and workshops. The recently organised seminar by the association in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh on de-oiled cotton seed cake as cattle, poultry and fish feed generated overwhelming response. Apart from domestic use, cotton seed by-products have got huge exports potential. The exports of linters, de-oiled cake and other products are gradually gaining momentum. From Rs 252 crore in 2013-14, the exports have gone up to around Rs 324 crore in 2015-16.