October 18, 2025
  • Oilseeds yield is used oil for cooking and frying and meal – the residual cake after extraction of oil from the seeds which is a protein-rich ingredient used in livestock, poultry and aqua feed.

MUSTARD IN INDIA

  • India’s most significant domestically-grown oilseed is rapeseed-mustard.
  • Its share in the country’s production of vegetable oils has been estimated at 42.6% (more than soyabean’s 19.2%) and in that of meal at 30.3% (next to soyabean’s 38.9%)
  • Mustard seeds have high levels of glucosinolates, a group of sulphur and nitrogen-containing compounds contributing to the characteristic pungency of their oil and meal.

ISSUES

  • Pungent smell limits the oil’s acceptability among consumers.
  • Rapeseed meal is unpalatable to poultry and pigs, while having to be mixed with fodder grass and water for giving to cattle and buffaloes.
  • Besides reducing their feed intake, high glucosinolates are also known to cause goiter (swelling of neck) and internal organ abnormalities in livestock.
    • Normal mustard (Brassica juncea) cultivated in India contain 120-130 parts per million (ppm or mg/kg) of glucosinolates.

RESOLUTION

  • Indian scientists have developed the first ever low-pungent mustard that is pest and disease-resistant.
  • It is based on CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing, while being non-GM and transgene-free.
  • It is produced through gene editing of ‘Varuna’, a high-yielding Indian mustard variety, using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology.
    • Gene Editing incorporates modification of existing genetic material to improve the quality.
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