Sunflower farmers have been advised to sell the produce on harvest to reap better returns.
With the arrival of the Karthigai sown sunflower in the markets, farmers in this part of the country have been debating whether to sell the produce immediately upon harvest or wait for the markets to look up.
The Domestic and Export Market Intelligence Cell (Demic) functioning at TNAU, which extends support to the farmers, perceives that the produce would fetch around Rs 36 to Rs 38 a kilogram during April-June.
“The arrivals are expected to be less this season as the sowing was reduced due to poor rainfall. The possibility of an increase beyond this range is limited. Farmers are therefore recommended to sell sunflower upon harvest without resorting to storage through the regulated markets in the vicinity,’’ say Demic experts.
Karur, Tiruchi, Tuticorin, Dharmapuri, Virudhunagar, Dindigul, Tirunelveli, Thiruvannamalai and Namakkal are the major sunflower producing districts in Tamil Nadu.
The total area and production of sunflower in the State during 2011-2012 were around 20,000 hectares and 30,000 tonnes, respectively and the productivity was 1,742 kg/ha.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has reported an increase in the import of vegetable oils into India during 2012-13.
The import forecast includes 7.6 million tonnes of palm oil, 1.1 mt of soyabean oil, 1 mt of sunflower oil and 10,000 tonnes of other edible oils. India imports vegetable oils from Indonesia, Malaysia, Argentina, etc.