India’s wheat output could reach a new high of 114 million tonnes
A top food ministry official said on Wednesday that wheat production is expected to reach a new high of 114 million tonnes in the current crop year 2023-34, assuming normal weather conditions. The final leg of wheat sowing, the main rabi (winter) crop, is underway and will last until next week. According to official data, wheat was planted on 320.54 lakh hectares as of last week.
Wheat production reached a new high of 110.55 million tonnes in the 2022-23 crop year (July-June), up from 107.7 million tonnes the previous year.
“We expect that the total area under cultivation of wheat will increase this year, and God willing, if the climate is favorable, production will be 114 million tonnes,” Food Corporation of India (FCI) Chairman and Managing Director Ashok K. Meena told reporters.
The wheat crop area is also increasing compared to last year. Some states had a 1% deficit, but that will be made up in the first week of January, he said.
“If that is the level of production, we are very confident that we will be able to procure more than our requirement and also additional stocks needed for the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) for next year,” he added.
When asked if the central nodal agency intends to increase procurement given the opening wheat balance of 76 lakh tonnes on April 1, which is just enough to meet the buffer requirement, the FCI chief responded, “We will do our best to provide the minimum support price (MSP) to all farmers.”
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Prices appear to have stabilized and are not higher than they were last year as a result of the open market sale.”Because the wheat MSP is 7% higher than last year, we hope that many farmers will be willing to give their produce to the FCI,” Meena stated. Last year, the FCI procured 26.2 million tonnes of wheat, exceeding the annual buffer requirement of 18.4 million tonnes.
The wheat crop for this year will be ready for harvest in April. FCI is the central nodal agency that buys rice and wheat to ensure MSP for farmers and distributes it for free to 81 crore poor people through ration shops. It also uses surplus grain via OMSS to increase domestic availability and keep prices under control.
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