News Capsule: India’s oilmeal exports declined 13% in FY 2025-26, China emerged as the largest buyer
27-May-2026 03:05 PM
News Capsule: India’s oilmeal exports declined 13% in FY 2025-26, China emerged as the largest buyer
★ India’s oilmeal exports during FY 2025-26 (April-March) fell 13% to 3.769 million tonnes, compared to 4.342 million tonnes in the previous year. Exports in March 2026 alone dropped 33% to 274,887 tonnes.
★ The decline was mainly due to higher freight costs caused by the Red Sea crisis, container shortages, stiff competition from South America and Europe, and elevated domestic soybean prices.
★ However, China emerged as the biggest buyer of Indian oilmeals. During 2025-26, China imported 878,000 tonnes of oilmeals from India, including 871,000 tonnes of rapeseed meal. China’s 100% tariff on Canadian canola/rapeseed meal significantly boosted India’s exports.
★ Soybean meal exports remained weak as Indian soymeal was costlier than supplies from Argentina and Brazil. Domestic feed manufacturers also shifted towards cheaper DDGS as an alternative feed ingredient.
★ South Korea became the second-largest importer with 350,000 tonnes, while exports to Bangladesh declined nearly 50% due to political instability in the country.