Indian households shun downmarket palm oil, cutting demand in lockdown – ZAWYA

Indian households shun downmarket palm oil, cutting demand in lockdown – ZAWYA

Indian households shun downmarket palm oil, cutting demand in lockdown | ZAWYA MENA Edition HomeMarketsCommoditiesArticleIndian households shun downmarket palm oil, cutting demand in lockdown Edible oil consumption in India trebled over the past two decades as the population rose, incomes increased, and people started to eat out more    Shoppers are seen in an aisle with subsidised vegetable oils at a government outlet in Cairo, Egypt August 29, 2017. Image used for illustrative purposes MUMBAI/KUALA LUMPUR - Palm oil demand in India, the world's top edible oil importer, is set to plunge this year as coronavirus lockdowns slash food service sector demand and households opt for alternatives at the supermarket.India's palm oil imports could plunge 20% from a year ago to 7.5 million tonnes in the 2019/20 marketing year ending on Oct. 31, said Angshu Mallick, deputy chief executive of Adani Wilmar, a leading edible oil refiner in the country. That would be the lowest imports since 2010/11, according to data from India's Solvent Extractors Association (SEA)."Hotels, restaurants are not opening the way we were expecting after the lockdown. People are not going out and eating the way they use to," Mallick said.India's palm oil imports could plunge 20% from