According to the government, 46 lakh bales of jute bags would be needed to pack food grains in the next harvest season of 2022-23, but industry officials predict that the jute sector will be unable to satisfy demand owing to a lack of raw jute supply.
An overview of the requirement for jute bags to the tune of around 46 lakh bales in the year 2022-23 was given at a recent meeting by the Union Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ministry with stakeholders to ascertain jute bag demand, but the low commitment of new jute bags by jute mills is creating a severe shortage situation, they said.
The Indian Jute Mills Association's commitment for the season 2022-23 was also reviewed during the meeting.
"The meeting attributed the lack of packing material to jute mills' limited manufacturing capacity, lack of modernisation, and lack of output expansion." However, no government is making a genuine attempt to improve raw jute output, which is the source of the problem, according to a senior IJMA official.
According to the source, the Centre set raw jute trading at Rs 6,500 per quintal, which dried up the market and caused a raw jute shortage for mills.
"Either the government must secure a consistent supply of raw jute or the bag prices must be increased," the mill owners stated.
The current challenge faced by the department of food is for arranging jute bags in Kharif season 2021-22, for which 25 lakh bales are required, of which the commitment of supply by IJMA is of 18 lakh bales and which has been further decreased by them to 16 lakh bales, authorities added.
India is now promoting jute as a fabric for a sustainable future, with the government requiring that all grains and 20% of sugar be packaged in jute bags.
However, detractors argue that the country's dilapidated mills and outmoded farming techniques are incompatible with such lofty goals.
