Groundnut, Origin : Harvested From Peanut Plants

Groundnut is the major oilseed of India. It accounts for around 25% of the total oilseed production of the country. Annual production of Indian Peanuts and Indian Peanuts oil are around 5-8mln and 1.5 mln tons respectively. Peanuts Production is highly vulnerable to rainfall deviations and display huge fluctuation between years.

Regional estimates are Gujarat (1-3.5 million tons), Tamil Nadu (1million tons), Andhra Pradesh (1-2 million tons), Karnataka (0.5 million tons), Maharashtra (0.5 million tons) are the major producers of Peanuts.

Around 75% of the crop is produced in khariff (June - September) and remaining 25% in rabi (November - March). India exported around 100000 tons of groundnut oil in 2003-04 after 4 decades, as crop failed in Senegal and Argentina. Peanuts or Groundnut kernels are approx. 70% of weight in shells and kernels have an oil recovery of 40-42%.

China (2-2.5 million tons), India (1.5-2 million tons) is the major producers of groundnut oil, followed by Sub-Saharan African countries and Central and South America.

Global trade of Peanuts or Groundnut oil is to the maximum of 100000 tons a year. EU and US are major importers. Senegal and Argentina are the major Peanuts exporters.

Factors Influencing Peanuts or Groundnut Markets

• Weather at the major domestic producing centre. The southwest monsoon is the most important factor that determines the area sown, production and prices.
• Price of other competitive oils in India, viz., soy oil, palm oil, cottonseed oil, sunflower oil and mustard oil.
• International price movement of soy oil at CBOT and palm oil at BMD, Malaysia also influence the groundnut oil prices.
• Festivals and celebrations also increase consumption and the prices.