SEA sets up 2,000 model mustard farms with Dutch tech to boost output
This story was originally published at 20:32 IST on 12 March 2025
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NEW DELHI – The Solvent Extractors' Association of India, in association with Dutch company Solidaridad, has so far set up 2,000 model mustard farms across Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan to help boost India's edible oil production. Mustard seed accounts for 40% of India's total edible oil production. Solidaridad is a technology company that promotes sustainable agricultural practices.
The Mustard Model Farm Project, launched in 2020-21, focuses on expanding cultivation areas, enhancing oil content in mustard seed to 38-42%, and promoting sustainable practices like the use of bio-fertilizers, reduced use of pesticides, and "climate-smart" agriculture, Vijay Data, chairman of the SEA Rape-Mustard Promotion Council, said in a press release.
The model farms deploy high-yielding seed varieties developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, SEA said in the release. To reduce imports of cooking oil, the government has allocated INR 101.13 billion for seven years under the edible oil mission.
According to SEA, the model farms have played a key role in increasing India's production of mustard seed from 8.60 million tonnes in 2020-21 (Jul-Jun) to 11.00 million tonnes in 2021-22, 11.35 million tonnes in 2022-23, and 12.00 million tonnes in 2023-24. The area under mustard seed cultivation has also grown from 6.70 million hectares in 2020-21 to about 10 million hectares in 2023-24. In 2024-25, mustard seed production is projected at 11.52 million tonnes, SEA added.
The yield of mustard seed from the model farms has also improved significantly, by 20-25%. "Notably, in the year 2024-25 alone, yield improvement has been recorded at approximately 24%," SEA said. "This is the fifth year of The Mustard Model Farm Project and it has demonstrated tremendous potential in enhancing mustard production," SEA President Sanjeev K. Asthana said. End
Reported by Afra Abubacker
Edited by Rajeev Pai
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