Jayant Agro-Organics Ltd (JAOL), a leading global oleochemical company, is developing short-duration castor varieties in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Oilseed Research (IIOR)-ICAR and Sardar Dantiwada University, according to Managing Director Abhay Udeshi. The move aims to address the challenge that castor is a long-duration crop, typically sown in July-August and harvested after January, extending until April.
Collaboration and Seed Development
Udeshi told businessline in an online interaction that JAOL has "good interaction" with IIOR-ICAR and works with Sardar Dantiwada University, which is primary for castor. The company communicates its requirements to researchers, focusing on short-duration crops. "We have to ensure that the farmer is always interested in castor. We work on the development of hybrid seeds, and then we multiply them and take them to the farmer," Udeshi said. Castor is described as the "king of deserts or barren lands" and is a sturdy, non-edible crop that serves as an insurance crop for farmers against adverse weather.
JAOL has been involved in bringing out Gujarat castor varieties, starting with GCH 1 and currently GCH 9. Each variety has a life of about 10 years before pests and insects develop resistance. The company buys castorseed mainly through traders but also works directly with farmers.
Yield Improvements and Targets
According to Udeshi, castorseed yield has increased from 600-700 kg per hectare to 2-2.5 tonnes per hectare. On JAOL's demo farms, yields have reached 6-7 tonnes, highlighting the importance of farming practices. The national target should be to increase yield to 3 tonnes in the next 5-10 years.
| Yield Metric | Historical | Current | Demo Farm | National Target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| kg per hectare | 600-700 | 2,000-2,500 | 6,000-7,000 | 3,000 (5-10 yrs) |
Production Outlook and Impact of Weather
Udeshi noted that erratic monsoon and heat waves have affected this year's yield, estimated at 2.1-2.2 tonnes per hectare. The expected crop is between 16.5 and 17.5 lakh tonnes, though two weeks ago the output was scaled down to 16 lakh tonnes. Regarding El Nino, Udeshi said the monsoon was not promising, but castor, being a sturdier crop, could see more farmers planting it as a "reliable insurance."
"We have to ensure that the farmer is always interested in castor." — Abhay Udeshi, Managing Director, Jayant Agro-Organics Ltd
Company Initiatives and JV with Arkema
The Mumbai-based firm, founded in 1992 and public since 1993, has been investing time and resources with farmers through Sardar Dantiwada University. JAOL operates under the government's Pragati project and its own I-Pragati (Ishedu) sustainability initiative, reaching about 15,000 farmers. The company assures farmers it is a year-round buyer of castorseed. JAOL makes hybrid seeds for sowing; foundation seeds are crushed by its subsidiary Ishedu Agro-Chem Private Ltd, a joint venture with French company Arkema—the largest user of castor oil. "The French company took a stake in our company to secure their oil needs," Udeshi said.
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