Special Focus: Indian Sub-Continent :
Dynamics of Vegoils in India
Ms. Bhavna Shah
Bhavna Shah is the Country Representative for India and Sri Lanka, for MPOC, based in its office in Mumbai, India, a position she has held since joining MPOC in 2004. She has immersed herself into activities of benefit not only to Malaysian Palm Oil but also to the whole vegetable oils industry in India. Interacting with the suppliers, buyers and policy makers on both sides, she has gained an in-depth insight into the workings of both the trade and industry.
Her experience has attracted the attention of the academia as well. She has been invited to make presentations at various institutions of higher learning to their faculty and students, both domestic and international. Appreciating her knowledge about the Indian market and its various challenges, she has also been invited to make presentation at international forums in Malaysia.
In recognition of her contributions to the trade and industry, she was conferred the Woman Entrepreneur Of The Year Award at GLOBOIL 2009. The Indian Medical Association also honoured Ms Shah on the occasion of International Women’s Day, 2010, for her contributions in various fields.
Ms Shah also sits on the organising committees of SCODET ASIA and GLOBOIL India. Her presentation at this event will cover a vast range of topics of interest to both players within India as well as international players who are interested in pursuing their fortunes in India.
She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce & Economics from the Bombay University. She has also undertaken program under Harvard Business School for Executive Education.
India continues to be heavily import reliant in so far as its vegetable oils demand is concerned. Inspite of various measures implemented by the GOI, domestic production continues to lag way behind the rising demand. Per capita consumption continues to rise due to economic growth. Compounded by the rising population, demand for vegoils is growing at an alarming pace. At the same time, industrial growth and environmental concerns lends an additional impetus to the demand for vegoils.
Where does India go from here?
Trade bodies continue to demand an increase in import duties on vegoils to improve returns to farmers from oilseeds; but, is this the answer to increasing local production? Has this succeeded in the past when duties very at a higher level?
Indian agri productivity is amongst the lowest on a global basis. Can this be improved to provide some relief to the supply-demand gap?
It is an uphill trek for the vegoils and oilseeds sectors to bridge this gap. A concerted effort is required to alleviate the situation but it is difficult to paint a rosy picture for the near-term
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