India grants duty concession to US on just 5 lakh tonnes of DDGS under trade pact
New Delhi (PTI): India has granted a quota-based duty concession on only 5 lakh tonnes, which is equivalent to just 1 per cent of the total consumption of dried distillers' grains (DDGS), under the first phase of the bilateral trade pact, an official said.
The official said that DDGS will supplement domestic feed availability and help meet rising demand without diverting food grains from human consumption.
"Animal feed domestic consumption is 500 lakh tonnes, whereas the quota given to the US is only 5 lakh tonnes, which is equivalent to only 1 per cent of total consumption," the official said, adding imports of this grain reduce corn and soyabean imports for feed purposes.
Access to DDGS will reduce feed cost volatility, protecting poultry, dairy, aquaculture, and livestock producers and helping contain food inflation.
The grains will also reduce pressure on domestic corn and soybean markets, supporting the availability and affordability of staple food grains.
"India's feed demand growth is large, structural and long-term. Only 1 per cent quota of DDGS imports is a pragmatic, low-risk measure. It diversifies small quantities of imports to the US, reduces corn and soyabean imports for feed, supports livestock growth, stabilises prices, and aligns with national food security and export objectives," it added.
India's demand for animal products is increasing rapidly due to population growth, rising incomes, and urbanisation.
This has led to a corresponding increase in demand for animal feed, particularly corn (200 lakh tonnes) and wheat (65 lakh tonnes) soybean meal (62 lakh tonnes), which together account for nearly two-thirds of total feed consumption (500 lakh tonnes).
Domestic feed supply is increasingly constrained by limited arable land and productivity gaps.
Feed demand is projected to grow faster than domestic supply, making imports necessary by the early 2030s under all realistic growth scenarios.
India imported soybean meal (15 lakh ton) in 2021 due to domestic price pressures.
Currently imports more than 6 lakh tonnes of animal feed (key suppliers- Sri Lanka, China, USA, Thailand, Nepal), 6 lakh tonnes of soyabean (key suppliers- Niger, Togo, Benin, Mozambique) and 9 lakh tonnes of corn (key suppliers- Myanmar, Ukraine, Singapore, UAE).
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Rickelton's ton in vain as SRH beat MI by 6 wickets
Mumbai (PTI): Ryan Rickelton's whirlwind unbeaten ton was overshadowed by Heinrich Klaasen's unbeaten 65 as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets in an IPL match here on Wednesday.
Chasing an imposing 244-run target, Travis Head (76 off 30) and Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24) shared 129 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for SRH.
Klaasen (65 not out off 30 balls) then displayed his all-round hitting abilities to guide SRH home with the help of Nitish Kumar Reddy (21) and Salil Arora (30 not out off 10) in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, Rickelton's knock powered MI to 243 for five.
MI rode on a 93-run stand between Rickelton (123 not out off 55 balls) and Will Jacks (46 off 22) in 7.1 overs for the opening stand to power the side.
MI skipper Hardik Pandya scored a valuable 31 off 15 balls before being dismissed.
Praful Hinge (2/54), Eshan Malinga (1/29), Sakib Hasan (1/39) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/31) were the wicket-takers for SRH.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indian: 243 for 5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out; Praful Hinge 2/54).
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 249 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out; AM Ghazanfar 2/51).
