Rice bran oil, a hitherto untapped source to meet the edible oil deficit in India

Abstract

India is the world's fourth largest edible oil producer, it is the world's leading importer and consumer of edible oils in the world. The annual per capita consumption of edible oil in the country shot up from around 3 kg in 1950 to 15.9 kg during 2015-16. The continued demand for edible oils by the ever increasing population makes edible oil deficit as a perennial national problem. Therefore, it is pertinent to explore new, unconventional edible oil sources to meet country's ever growing edible oil demands. Of several available options, rice bran oil has potential to jazz up the edible oil deficit, thus making India self-sufficient. Nutritional and toxicological evaluations of rice bran oil proved that this is a healthier option and an attempt has been made in this direction to assess the available untapped rice bran oil reserves at state and county level for rapidly filling up the edible oil supply-demand deficit.