Castor production

The castor Bean Crop

Ricinus communis, the castor bean, is a species of flowering plant of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae. It is the sole species of the monotypic genus, Ricinus, and subtribe, Ricininae.

Castor is native from the south-eastern Mediterranean Basin, Eastern Africa, and India, although it is widespread throughout tropical regions.

Castor seed is the source of castor oil, which has a wide variety of uses. The seeds contain high percentage of oil that is rich in triglycerides, mainly ricinolein. The seed also contains ricin, a water-soluble toxin, which is also present in lower concentrations all over the plant.

Castor oil

Castor oil is a vegetable oil extracted from castor beans. Castor oil is a colorless to very pale-yellow liquid with a distinct taste and odor. Its boiling point is 313 °C (595 °F) and its density is 0.961 g/cm³ . It is a triglyceride in which approximately 90 percent of fatty acid chains are ricinoleates. Oleate and linoleates are the other significant components.

Properties of Castor and its derivatives:

  • Cold impact resistance
  • Ageing resistance
  • Chemical resistance
  • Abrasion resistance
  • Flexibility
  • Burst strength
  • Dimensional stability
  • Easy processing
  • Smooth surface finish
  • Lightweight
  • High and low temperature performance

Castor Oil – main uses

Uses of Castor and its derivatives

Castor oil and its derivatives are used in the manufacturing of soaps, lubricants, hydraulic and brake fluids, gas pipes and fittings, paints, dyes, coatings, inks, cold resistant plastics, nylon, textiles, shoes and other sports equipment, pharmaceuticals, perfumes, food preservatives, skin and hair care, precursor to industrial chemicals, lubrication, biodiesel among others.

Market overview

India is the leader in global castor seed production and leads international trade in castor oil, meeting about 80% of the total global demand of this commodity. China and Brazil are its other producers. China, US, EU, Japan are the major importers of castor oil.

Factors that
influencing the market

  • Domestic supply and demand scenario, inter crop price parity, cost of production, and prevailing international prices are major factors that influence prices in the castor seed market and that of its by-products like castor oil.
  • Weather conditions, pest, diseases, and other risk factors associated with agricultural crops.
  • Government policies on import, export, and other interventions.
  • Prices of other competitive oils like hydrogenated oil, dehydrated oil, sulphated and sulfonated oil etc.
  • Currency fluctuations.

Trading

Castor is a commodity and traded in the NCDEX – National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange.

NCDEX is a commodities exchange which deals primarily with agricultural commodities in India. The National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange was established in 2003, and its headquarters are in Mumbai (https://www.ncdex.com).

Castor market (US$bn) – Global

Global demand