Castorseeds
| Photo Credit:
alexander ruiz

The Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA) has forecast a drastic reduction in castorseed production for 2024-25.

The second estimate of castorseed production for the 2024-25 season, which was conducted by Indian Agribusiness Systems Ltd (AgriWatch), has assessed the castorseed production at 15.6 lakh tonnes (lt) in major producing States against 18.2 lt in its first estimates. India’s castorseed production was estimated at 19.76 lt in the 2023-24 season.

BV Mehta, Executive Director of SEA, attributed this decline to the adverse weather conditions in the major growing States of India.

High Feb temperatures

He said that rising temperatures since February have severely impacted crop yields, especially late- and re-sown crops. Lower yields were recorded in key growing districts across Gujarat and Rajasthan, he said.

Castor acreage in the country decreased to 8.68 lakh hectares (lh) in the 2024-25 season from 9.88 lh in 2023-24, registering a decline of 12 per cent. SEA has estimated the yield at 1,796 kg per hectare in the country during the 2024-25 season (2000 kg per hectare in 2023-24).

Gujarat area down

The area under castorseed in Gujarat, which is the major producer in the country, is expected to decline to 6.46 lh in 2024-25 from 7.24 lh in 2023-24. Castorseed production in Gujarat is expected to be at 12.26 lt in 2024-25 (15.74 lt), a decrease of 22 per cent.

He attributed this fall to higher-than-normal temperatures during February to April. This hastened crop maturity and reduced yields, he said. SEA has estimated the yield at 1,897 kg per hectare in Gujarat during the 2024-25 season (2174 kg per hectare).

Rajasthan output seen 13% lower

Rajasthan’s production is revised downward to 2.71 lt in 2024-25 (3.13 lt), which is a decrease of 13.41 per cent than last year. The area under the crop is estimated at 1.70 lh (1.92 lh).

Mehta said the sudden spike in temperatures in Rajasthan affected yields despite good water availability through canal irrigation. SEA has estimated the yield at 1,594 kg per hectare in Rajasthan during the 2024-25 season (1,630 kg per hectare).

Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are expected to produce 54,000 tonnes of castorseed in 2024-25 as against 80,200 tonnes in 2023-24. He attributed this decline to the decrease in the area under the crop from 60,100 hectares in 2023-24 to 37,500 hectares in 2024-25.

Final estimates will be updated after the next round of survey scheduled for May 2025, he added.

Published on April 29, 2025