Guar Seed ( Guar Gum) production from Rajasthan in year 2015-2016 ( As per second estimate of Govt of Rajasthan )

Govt of Rajasthan has declared the second estimate of the Estimated crop production data in year 2015-2016.  This year Guar seed ( guar gum )  cultivation area in Rajasthan is estimated as 47,86,781  Hectare, as per the estimate the productivity of gGuar seed is   435 Kg/ Hectare. Estimated seed production is 20,83,734 MT ( Around 2 Crore Bags).

Estimated Guar seed (Guar gum)- Cyamopsis tetragonoloba production in Rajasthan in Year 2015-16

Storage insect pest problem in Guar ( guar gum ) seed

Guar is emerging major industrial crop in India. Some times farmers or stockists have to wait for good price. Proper storage is very important in this process.  Generally there is a strainght concept in Guar growing belt that no insect pest will attack guar seed in storage. Even I was also thinking the same.  During my last visit of many Guar seed storage ware houses. I noticed  severe attack in stored Guar seed.

In initial discussion warehouse manager or owner were denying the possibility of insect pest presence in Guar Seed. I requested them to check then they find that it was true. 

Problem of storage insect pest in Guar ( guar gum ) Seed.

Generally we will find a cluster of two three seed stick with each other with a white substance. If we will see it with more attention then we will find cavity in seeds. We can also find insect or larva of insect in these cavities.

To avoid this attack farmer must be very careful while storing the seeds. Guar seed must be well dried before storage.  Generally there is 18 %  moisture in harvested seed.  After the harvesting seed must be spread in sunlight for 7-8 days with three time turning up and down. 

Storage bag must be well cleaned and dry . Some times the egg of insect keep hiding in the bags and they start growing favorable condition in warehouse.

There must be proper ventilation in storage room of ware house. Use of mechanical drying for proper moisture control, before storage is also helpful. 

If the attack is noticed then farmer can also use  Aluminium Phosphide tables for fumigation or other fumigation method suggested by the agriculture expert.

Problem of storage insect pest in Guar ( guar gum ) Seed.

Guar gum and guar seed prices are falling freely with Crude prices

Crude oil prices are going down and down every day. There are rare chances of recovery in crude prices at list for next 12 months. It is predicted that crude prices may fall up to 20 USD/ barrel from current level of 33 USD/barrel. 

More than 60 % guar gum powder is used in oil and natural gas industry. Is it justified to associate Guar prices with crude oil prices as most of stack holder of Guar Industry thinks. It is not true as 70% of guar seed is used in cattle feed industry as Guar Korma or Guar Churi. It means  around 80 % Guar seed in not used in oil and Natural Gas Industry.

In this current situation, price of guar seed is not falling it is taking a correction of sudden increase in price in year 2012. If we analyse the historic prices of Guar then we find that INR 2500-3000 is a stability level for Guar seed.

Cultivation area and Production has just doubled in last 3-4 Years. Industry is still consuming the Guar seed produced by the farmers.

Farmers or stack holders don't need to take  tension. Guar industry will keep growing. The uses of hydro colloids is increasing day by day. Industry will benefit from stability of  Guar prices. It will more strengthen with narrow space of fluctuation in guar prices.  

It is time to revive the industry from a Traditionally Proprietorship firms to Global Brands. Yes Global Brands. It is pathetic 10,000 crore Industry does not have one trusted brand. 

It is noted that Guar Gum export has come down more than 50 % in comparison to last year. 

Guar Gum at Lowest level after December 2010

Guar gum has slide down at lowest level after December 2010.  Yesterday the rate of Guar gum in Jodhpur Market was below INR 6000/100 Kg, which was at lowest level after December, 2010. Prices of Guar Seed has also slide down below 3200 In Local Agriculture market of Jodhpur and Ganganagar.

More that 70% Guar gum is used in Oil and Natural Gas industry. Prices of crude oil is also at lowest level.  Demand of Guar Gum has slide down drastically from Oil and Natural Gas Industry. It is peak time of Energy demand but prices are lowest level. There are no any chances in recovery of crude oil prices till next winter  ( November,2016  to March- 2017).

Pressure from crude prices will always reflect in  Indian Guar Gum Industry. Lean period in Indian Guar gum industry will keep going up to 2017. 

It is very critical time for new industries. Most of new plants are closed.  It has become very difficult to recover the processing cost even for old plants. Physical stocking  is main loss making activity for the industries.

Farmers are in demoralized with this price of guar gum.  Some farmers have stock for two three years , they are in heavy loss.  Industry need some new initiatives in R&D and exploration of new market except Oil and Natural Gas Industry.  Dependency on Oil and Natural GAS Industry Must Come down below 50 % for sustainability in Guar  Industry.

Devaluation of Chinese Yuan and its impact on Indian Guar Gum Industry.

In August 2015 China devaluated its currency around 3 % in single week. It leaded to global crises. Economist and market analyst point out that China has taken this step to save its export, which was declining regularly. The declining export was not a good sign for the Chinese economy. China want to maintain its export share in global market.

Indian Guar Gum industry was already facing the crises due to imbalance in demand and supply. In recent year product of Guar gum is increasing continuously and the global demand is coming down due to decline in crude prices. Here I would like to mention that more than 60 % Guar gum is used in Oil and Natural Gas Production Industry. Around 40 % Guar gum is used in other industries.

Guar Guard at guar gum crop cultivation farm 

This devaluation is affecting  Indian Guar gum industry in two way. First china import the Guar Split from India and process it and re-export it. Import export is done in USD but the processing cost comes down and china provide guar gum powder at lower rate than India. This is the first effect. 

In another way China is supplying alternate product of Guar Gum at lower cost than earlier. Xanthon gum is major alternate of Guar Gum powder which is used in other  than Oil and Natural Gas  Industry. There is a lot of requirement of guar gum powder from food processing, processed food, pharmaceutical industry, textile industry, Souse & catchup industry, FMCG industry, liquid shop and detergent industry. China is major producer of Xanthon gum . It is substituting at large scale.

Though Xanthon Gum is not a complete alternate of Guar Gum , but industries are preferring Xanthon gum due to lower price than Guar Gum.

Guar gum cultivation statistics of Rajasthan year 2015-2016

Govt of Rajasthan has launched the crop wise area sown for Kharif season. As per data released total sowing  of Guar is on 39,18,000 Hac in year 2015-2016 , by the end of season it might be reach  up to 40,00,000 Hac.  This is 23% more  than  the last year.  This figure was 31,84,000 Hac in the same period of last year. If we take a average productivity of  400 Kg per Hactare then there are chances that this figure may cross the last year production. Thus there may be a production of 16,00,000 MT Guar seed in this year ( 2015-2016 ) from Rajasthan.

Solvay and L'Oreal join hands for sustainable guar farming in India

Solvay, the Belgium-based manufacturer of specialty chemicals, and L'Oreal, the French cosmetics and beauty company, have teamed up in a scalable three-year project to teach and promote sustainable agricultural practices among 1,500 guar bean farmers across ten villages in the desert region of Bikaner, Rajasthan.

Solvay is one of the leading global players in guar derivatives and supplies its customers who formulate these ingredients in a variety of applications such as in food, cosmetics, oil & gas extraction and textile industries.

Grown mainly in India's semi-arid regions, guar is the main resource for many farming communities but its production is volatile as it relies on monsoon rains. Solvay's ‘Sustainable Guar Initiative’ aims to empower countless farmers with the tools and knowledge to cultivate the crop through good agricultural practices, resulting in more continuous, high-yield production. Solvay's Novecare global business unit (GBU) in 2013 launched the initiative, which is also implemented by non-governmental organisation TechnoServe, as part of the Group's sustainable development strategy Solvay Way.

"Solvay’s initiative and partnership with L'Oreal, acting as a founding member, brings many benefits - for farmer communities, their environment as well as for demanding industrial applications. The project will help farmers improve the use of water and preserve the soil, it will raise their income and support local communities. Our approach will also reinforce the availability of bio-based guar for industries and allow them to promote their ambitious sustainability goals,” said Emmanuel Butstraen, president of Solvay Novecare and sponsor of the ‘Sustainable Guar Initiative’.

India is the world's top guar producer with about 80 percent of total production. As a drought-resistant crop, guar conserves water resources and replenishes soil nutrients through nitrogen fixation. The seeds are processed to obtain guar gum. Demand for this ingredient is on the rise in a range of industries.

Laurent Gilbert, director for International Development of Advanced Research at L'Oreal, commented, "Our partnership with Solvay is a concrete implementation of our ‘Sharing Beauty with All’ sustainability commitment. By improving yields while promoting a suitable model of sustainable agriculture, we will improve the livelihood of farmers and protect local resources such as water, soil and biodiversity. This program will allow ensuring a durability of income for guar bean farmers while considering the impact of climate change into their activities.” 

For more information please click the below link.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/b2b-connect/solvay-and-l-oreal-join-hands-for-sustainable-guar-farming-in-india-115090300399_1.html

Guar Korma the emerging base of Guar Gum Industry.

In this worst performance of guar gum, guar korma is emerged as main leverage for the guar industry. Low global demand, excess production and low prices of crude oil and natural gas is putting a negative impact on guar gum prices. Industry is getting strong support from Guar korma. 

Three year before when prices of Guar seed were Rs 27,000/100 Kg and guar gum at Rs 90,000/100 Kg at that time rate of guar Korma was only Rs 5/Kg. Now it is totally different , guar seed is at Rs 3700/100 Kg and Guar Gum is at Rs  7800/ 100 Kg and guar Korma is at Rs 2600/ 100 Kg. 

There are two possible reason. Protein content in Raw Guar Korma is up to 45 % which can be increased up to 56% -58 % by cleaning and roasting of Raw Guar Korma. At the another side Soya oil Cake is major competitor of Guar Korma with maximum 45 % protein.

Cattle feed industry prefer Guar Korma over Soya protein. Guar Korma is more digestive in nature and it is cheaper  than Soya. Demand of Guar Korma is very high from the cattle feed industry.

At another side there is low demand of guar gum so processing of guar seed is almost closed, that's why supply of the Guar Korma is very low and demand is high. 

There is huge potential of Guar korma from cattle feed industry. In coming two three year it is not impossible if Guar korma reaches at 5000-5500. Market of Guar Korma is very sound and is growing Day by day. Cattle feed industry will now downfall like oil and natural industry. Demand of cattle feed will increase day by day. 

Seed Treatment or Inoculation of guar seeds for cultivation

Guar is a leguminous crop and its roots bear nodules with special kind of bacteria that converts atmospheric free nitrogen to fertilizer available form. This symbiotic relation between bacteria and root nodules helps to reduce the cost of nitrogen fertilizer for crop. Therefore, to maintain the population of bacteria in the soil with respect to growth of plant seeds of Guar are to be inoculated with these bacteria before sowing. 

This is done by preparing a 10 percent sugar or gur (jaggery) solution in boiling water. This jaggery/sugar solution is allowed to cool. After cooling, 3-4 packets of Guar bacterial culture (Bradyrhizobium sp.) are mixed to make a thin paste. This paste is coated over to the seed. Seed is dried under shade for 30-40 minutes before sowing. 

Guar Gum prices will be hurt by ban on Nestle owned noodles "Maggi .

Nestle is one of largest consumer for Guar gum specially in food industry.  Its application in Noodles and other food items consumes guar gum. The noodles brand "Maggi" has made penetration in Indian market very fast, Maggi is almost consumes through out the India. Recent controversy of  finding of food ingredient more than limit has leaded to ban of MAGGI though out the India and many South East Asian countries.

This ban is also hit the other brands of noodles. Since Food industry is largest consumer of Guar gum after  Oil & Natural  Gas Production industry. Already there is slow down in Oil and natural gas industry, then there was little bit hope form Food Industry. The Ban on MAGGI has hit the consumption of guar gum in food industry.

The demand of Guar gum will remain under pressure during this controversy. Processed food is very goof market for Guar gum. Govt and Industry must come out form this situation. This will be helpful for Farmers and industry both. This ban has also hit the other food ingredients, which are used in MAGGI.

Maggi also uses guar gum in large quantity like Tomato Ketchup , PASTA, Magic Masala etc..But Noodles were having major market share.