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Indonesia expects its palm oil exports to India to exceed 5 million tonnes in 2025, up from 4.8 million tonnes in 2024, following India's decision to cut import duties, according to a senior industry official.
Eddy Martono, chairman of the Indonesian Palm Oil Council (IPOC), told news agency PTI that the world's largest palm oil producer will also export 100,000 oil palm seedlings to India this year, supporting the country's ambitious plan to expand palm cultivation to one million hectares by 2025-2026.
"Following the import duty cut, India's imports of Indonesian palm oil will increase in 2025. I expect them to exceed 5 million tonnes," Martono said.
India recently cut the basic customs duty on crude palm oil to 10% from 20%, as part of efforts to boost domestic availability of edible oils and keep prices in check.
Indonesia's palm oil exports to India fell to 4.8 million tonnes in 2024, compared with 6 million tonnes in 2023, partly due to palm oil trading at a premium to soybean and sunflower oil for most of 2024.
However, palm oil prices have traded below soybean oil since April 2025, improving its competitiveness.
"I don't think there will be a price problem this year. In 2025, I'm confident we will increase exports to India," Martono said.
India is stepping up imports of palm seedlings as part of its National Mission on Edible Oils – Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), which aims to expand the area under cultivation from the current 350,000 hectares to one million hectares by 2025-2026.
Martono said India purchased around 500,000 seedlings during 2023 and 2024, with a further 100,000 seedlings expected to be imported this year, noting that planting one hectare requires around 200 palm seedlings.
He explained that Indonesia supports palm seedling exports to India through company-to-company agreements, and can provide technical guidance thanks to its extensive experience in palm cultivation.
He also noted that the Indonesian Palm Oil Council (IPOC) and the Indian Vegetable Oil Producers' Association (IVPA) recently signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen cooperation in the palm oil sector.
"India is a very important market for Indonesia. We hope to see stable exports to India following the signing of the MoU," Martono said.
The partnership also aims to address consumer concerns in India about the health effects of palm oil.
"Consumers in India still have misconceptions about Indonesian palm oil. Palm oil is a very healthy oil," Martono added, noting that the council is working with IVPA to counter negative campaigns against Indonesian palm oil.
It is worth noting that India is the world's largest importer and consumer of vegetable oils.
Source: PTI