Groundnut to be priced around Rs. 4500 per quintal at harvest in Raichur market

 Groundnut is one of the important oilseeds in the world today. It is called as the ‘king’ of oilseeds and is one of the most important food and cash crop of the country, contributes around 45 percent of the total oilseed production in the country. It has gained a lot of economic and nutritional importance worldwide. Known for its ability to survive in less favorable agro-climatic conditions, groundnuts have above 40% oil content and around 25 % protein. Used as edible oil in many parts of world, the oil cake derived after extracting oil is also used as cattle feed. China leads in production of groundnut, having a share of about 41.5% of overall world production, followed by India (18.2%) and the United States of America (6.8%), i.e. India is the second largest producer of groundnut after China. The area under groundnut in India was 4.19 million hectares with the production of 5.62 million tones in 2011-2012. Gujarat is the leading producer contributing 29.63% of the total production followed by Tamil Nadu (20.78%), Andhra Pradesh (15.23%), Rajasthan (8.23%), Maharashtra (8.23%) and Karnataka (7.82%).

            To take the right decision about sowing of Rabi groundnut, the Domestic and Export Market Intelligence Cell, Department of Agribusiness Management, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad undertook a study to come up with reliable price forecasts of groundnut in Raichur market at the time of harvest. Monthly modal prices of Groundnut were collected from one of the leading Groundnut markets, Raichur for the past 20 years and were analyzed by using rigorous time series analytical models and reliable forecast prices that would prevail in Raichur market during the months of February, March and April, 2013 were established.

            Therefore, according to the price forecasts, the opinions of traders and suggestions of the experienced persons in this crop, the prices of this crop for  Raichur market, per quintal is expected to range between Rs. 4000-4300 in the month of February, Rs.4200-4500 in the month of March and Rs.4500-4800 in the month of April. The minimum support price announced by the central government for this crop is Rs. 3700 per quintal. Bold seeded, cleaned, well dried pods with high oil content are going to fetch higher prices.  So, farmers are advised to keep all these suggestions in mind while cultivating and preparing the product for the market.