SEA survey estimates 27% increase in Gujarat groundnut production this season

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Groundnut production in Gujarat is expected to hit a record 42.19 lakh tonnes (lt) during kharif 2024, which is a growth of 26 per cent over the previous year.

“Gujarat is expected to achieve a record groundnut production of 42.19 lakh tonnes this year, surpassing the previous record of 38.55 lakh tonnes set in 2021-22, Good rains this year and the increase in acreage have contributed to this rise,” said BV Mehta, Executive Director of The Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA), told businessline. The SEA team concluded its three-day survey on Saturday. Last year, groundnut production in Gujarat was 33.45 lakh tonnes.

Gujarat has been a leading producer of groundnut – a key kharif oilseeds crop – accounting for 40 per cent of India’s groundnut production. For the past 15 years, the SEA Groundnut Promotion Council has conducted annual surveys to evaluate the size and quantity of groundnut crop, benefiting both members and the wider industry. This year, a 22-member SEA team surveyed the major groundnut-producing districts in Saurashtra region of Gujarat from October 17-19. Vinod Patel, Co-Chairman of the SEA Groundnut Promotion Council, and BV. Mehta, Executive Director of SEA, were part of this team.

“This significant increase in groundnut production can be attributed to good monsoon which in turn has led to a higher yield – rising to 2,210 kg per hectare from 2,045 kg per hectare last year. The cultivation area has also increased by 2.75 lakh hectares,” said Mehta who was part of the team that conducted the survey. This year, a total of 19.09 lakh hectares were covered under groundnut cultivation in Gujarat. During the 2023 kharif season, groundnut sowing was done on 16.35 lakh hectares.

The highest yield 2,625 kg per hectare was recorded in Jamnagar district during the 2024 kharif season. Dwarka, Junagadh, Gir Somnath and Porbandar districts also reported a high 2,500 kg per hectare of groundnut production. In 2023, the highest per-hectare yield of 2,750 kilograms was recorded in Dwarka district.

“Last year, the farmers got good value for their groundnut crop and the markets remained stable. So this year, groundnut has replaced cotton crop in many places,” Mehta said.

The survey expects Dwarka district to produce 5.43 lt of groundnut, followed by Rajkot 5.36 lt, and Junagadh 5.20 lt during kharif 2024-25. While Jamnagar is expected to produce 4.78 lt, Amreli 3.92 lt, and Banaskantha is estimated to produce 3.87 lt during the period.