June 2, 2008

India's soy acreage may rise by 13 percent in the next season

India's area for soy crop may rise by 13 percent in the upcoming sowing season due to better returns to farmers.

Indian farmers will utilize a record of 10 million hectares, D.R. Kalra, executive director of Soybean Processors' Association of India (SOPA), said.

In 2007, India's soy area was only 8.85 million hectares.

The government estimates soy production to hit a record of 9.45 million tonnes in the year ending September 2008.

The expected rise is attributed to a shift in soy planting in the key growing states - Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

The largest shift of more than 24 percent is seen in Maharashtra, the second largest producer, where farmers of sugarcane and pulses may switch over to soy.

The returns to Indian soy farmers in the current year have been one of the highest amongst all winter-harvested crops, the association noted.

The productivity in the current year touched 1,070 kilogranne per hectare against 927 kg last year.

It is expected to rise further in the upcoming season due to use of good quality seeds.

The seed replacement at present is only about 5-7 percent as most of the farmers keep seeds from the previous crop, which had been impacting productivity, Kalra said.