With ethanol makers competing for maize, poultry industry sends SOS to Govt
- February 17, 2024
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
No Comments
With ethanol makers competing for maize, poultry industry sends SOS to Govt
Subject: Geography
Section: Economic Geography
Context:
- The poultry industry in India, facing stiff competition from ethanol producers for maize supplies, has requested the Union Government to permit the importation of genetically modified (GM) maize and soyameal, essential for poultry feed.
Details:
- Additionally, the industry advocates for the introduction of high-yielding GM seeds to boost domestic productivity.
- Similar to the transformative impact of the Green Revolution on wheat and paddy yields, there is a need for similar advancements in maize cultivation.
- The per capita egg consumption now stood at 101 eggs, It is expected to go up to 180 eggs in the next 6-7 years.
Steps to increase output:
- The government should allow the import of genetically modified (GM) maize for ethanol production and aim to increase maize production from 30 million tonnes to 40 million tonnes.
- This increase would help meet the growing demand for maize as feed in the poultry industry, which is expected to rise by 1 million tonnes annually from the current 16 million tonnes.
- The move towards using corn and broken rice for ethanol, with projections showing maize use for ethanol to grow significantly by 2027-28, is seen as exacerbating the shortage of these grains for other uses.
- While the poultry industry has become more efficient, reducing resource use by 70%, the cost of inputs in India remains high compared to global competitors like Brazil and Argentina, coupled with high volatility.
About maize:
- Maize is one of the most versatile emerging crops having wider adaptability under varied agro-climatic conditions.
- Globally, maize is known as the queen of cereals because it has the highest genetic yield potential among cereals.
- It is cultivated on nearly 190 m ha in about 165 countries having a wider diversity of soil, climate, biodiversity and management practices that contribute to 39 % of the global grain production.
- The United States of America (USA) is the largest producer of maize contributes nearly 30.99% of the total production in the world in 2020 and maize is the driver of the US economy.
- In India, Maize is grown throughout the year. It is predominantly a Kharif crop with 85 percent of the area under cultivation during the season.
- Maize is the third most important cereal crop in India after rice and wheat.
- It accounts for around 10 per cent of total food grain production in the country. India was also the fifth largest producer of Maize in 2020 as per FAO data and India’s share in world production accounted to be 2.59 per cent in the same year.
- In addition to staple food for human beings and quality feed for animals, maize serves as a basic raw material as an ingredient in thousands of industrial products that include starch, oil, protein, alcoholic beverages, food sweeteners, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, film, textile, gum, package and paper industries, etc.
- Areas of Cultivation:
- Major wheat-growing states in India are Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.
- India’s Production:
- Production of maize is estimated to be 35.91 million tonnes in 2022-23 (3rd Advance Estimate).
- Exports:
- The country has exported 3,453,680.58 MT of maize to the world for the worth of Rs. 8,987.13 crores/ 1,116.17 USD Million in 2022-23.
- Major Export Destinations (2022-23): Bangladesh, Vietnam, Nepal, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.
Source: TH BL