After Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to citizens in May 2026 to reduce edible oil consumption to help conserve foreign exchange reserves amid geopolitical tensions, India’s vegetable oil imports
fell 29 per cent year-on-year in June to 11.46 lakh tonnes.
According to the latest data from the Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA), it is the lowest level of edible oil imports since the start of the current oil year.
India, the world’s biggest importer of edible oils, had bought 16.16 lakh tonne in June 2025. Oil year runs from November to October. Despite the decline in June, the cumulative import in the first eight months of the 2025-26 oil year (November 2025-June 2026) rose to 105.7 lakh tonne, from 99.55 lakh tonne a year earlier.
In May 2026, PM Modi had asked people to become partners in strengthening the nation amid the West Asia crisis. Addressing a function in Hyderabad, the prime minister made seven appeals to the nation, including avoiding gold buying and foreign travel for one year. He also called for the revival of work-from-home practices. PM Modi also asked citizens to reduce edible oil consumption and urged farmers to cut dependence on chemical fertilisers imported from abroad.
The SEA in a statement said, “The latest figures indicate that while vegetable oil imports have remained higher overall during the current oil year, the substantial decline in June has moderated the pace of cumulative growth.”
The June decline was driven mainly by a 10.5 per cent month-on-month drop in palm oil imports to 487,000 tonne. Crude palm oil imports fell to 488,863 tonne from 546,456 tonne in May.
Soybean oil imports dropped 23 per cent to 381,000 tonnes in June from 494,000 tonne in May, as palm oil’s discount as compared to others narrowed to below $50 a tonne, the SEA said.
Sunflower oil imports, however, rose to 242,870 tonne in June from 195,726 tonne in May. Imports of refined cooking oils were nil for a second straight month. Total vegetable oil stocks stood at 20.09 lakh tonnes as of July 1, down from 22.16 lakh tonne a year earlier, reflecting the lower June imports.
The SEA said Nepal continued to ship significant volumes of refined oils to India, which pays no import duty on Nepalese oil under the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) pact.
Nepal exported about 338,854 tonne of refined oils to India between November 2025 and April 2026, mostly refined soyoil, along with sunflower oil, RBD palmolein and rapeseed oil.
Exports were estimated at about 54,000 tonnes in May and 32,000 tonnes in June, the SEA said. India primarily imports palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia, and soyabean oil from Argentina and Brazil.
India is one of the world’s largest consumers and importers of edible oils, with domestic production meeting only around 44% of the country’s annual requirement. The remaining 56% is met through imports, making edible oil one of India’s largest agricultural import items.
According to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, palm oil (crude and refined) is imported mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia, while soybean oil is sourced largely from Argentina and Brazil. Sunflower oil primarily comes from Russia and Ukraine, exposing India to geopolitical disruptions such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
In FY25, India’s vegetable oil import bill rose to $17.33 billion, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the country’s total agricultural imports of about $27 billion.
(With PTI Inputs)
