Centre clears sunflower procurement at MSP for Karnataka: Shivraj Singh Chouhan

New Delhi: Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that the Agriculture Ministry has approved the implementation of the Price Support Scheme (PSS) for the procurement of sunflower during the Rabi 2026 season in Karnataka.

A total of 9,023 MT of sunflower will be procured at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) under the Price Support Scheme (PSS) in the state, Chouhan said in a communication to Union Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi on Monday.

Joshi had earlier requested Chouhan to initiate the procurement of sunflower grown in Karnataka during the Rabi season to protect farmers from a price crash.

Sunflower is a major oilseed crop in Karnataka, with an estimated production of 0.44 lakh tonnes cultivated across 0.59 lakh hectares in the state. However, the current market price of sunflower is much lower than the MSP of Rs. 7,721 per quintal declared for Rabi 2026-27.

"Moreover, there is an apprehension of a further fall in sunflower prices in the coming days with the arrival of the peak harvesting season," Joshi had said.