Referring to procurement of wheat during the Rabi Marketing season 1999-2000, the Minister said that the procurement was nearing completion and that there was no shortage of space for stocking the wheat already purchased by Government agencies in

    Punjab. On reply to a query the Minister also said that no decision has been taken by the Government on export of wheat.

    Shri Barnala said that a working group has been constituted in the Ministry of Food and Consumer Affairs to look into the problems of edible oil sector with an integrated approach for evolving a coordinated edible oil sector. The Government, he said was open to any suitable measures that would help in tapping the non-conventional edible oil sources. Based on the results of studies including nutritional and toxicological studies carried out on rice bran oil, the Government had declared it as an edible oil and included it in the PFA Act and other control and regulation orders, the Minister pointed out.

    Speaking on the occasion Shri R.P. Sinha, Secretary, Department of Sugar and Edible Oils emphasised the need for developing oils from secondary sources which were still unexploited like rice bran. India stands at the second position in the production of rice in the world with an estimated production of 83 million tonnes in 1997-98; and with a target of 130 million tonnes set for the end of 10^th Five Year Plan.

    Shri Sinha said that the production of edible oils at present stood at 68 lakh tonnes against an estimated consumption requirement of about 82 lakh tonnes. The shortfall, he said, was met by imports and in the last one year about 2 million tonnes of imported edible oils have come into Indian markets. Though the current production of rice bran oil is around 5 lakh tonnes, the full potential is estimated at about 13.5 lakh tonnes, he added.

    The one-day seminar on edible rice bran oil was organised by the Solvent Extractors’ Association of India, Mumbai.