Mumbai: Gujarat is expected to witness a rise in oilseed production with more farmers shifting cultivation from cotton to groundnut and other oilseeds.

The soaring prices of edible oils have come as a welcome change for farmers hit by a glut in cotton production. Retail  prices of most edible oils have risen in the range of 30-42 per cent in the last one year and by up to 23 per cent so far in the current year.

The state government expects a 10 per cent increase in the cultivation of oilseeds.

The area under oilseed in the current kharif season is expected to rise to 27.2 lakh hectares from 24.3 lakh hectares during the last kharif season.

Oilseed cultivation is expected to rise elsewhere also with mustard oil prices shooting up by 18 to 23 per cent since January across the four metros and some other major cities.

In Delhi, retail prices of mustard oil rose the highest, shooting up by about 23 per cent to Rs81 from Rs66 a litre.

In Mumbai, prices rose by about 18 per cent to Rs80 from Rs68 a litre while in Kolkata, prices increased by about 21 per cent to Rs75.

Mustard oil prices also shot up in major consuming states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. 

Edible oils, which have a high weightage in the wholesale price index-based inflation measurement, will remain under pressure for next one year in the global market, a US report has said.

"Vegetable oil prices will likely remain above historic levels during 2008-09 as demand is strong primarily due to surging growth in the developing world," the US Department of Agriculture said in a release.

India, the world's biggest edible oil importer after China, imports nearly 40 per cent of its annual demand of around 11 million tonnes.

Prices of vegetable oils have doubled or even trebled globally over the last 18 months due to production shortfalls and policy constraints.

Of the major oils, corn oil rose the maximum of over 120 per cent to $1,556 per in 2008, followed by soyabean, coconut and palm oils, USDA said.

USDA has projected India's vegetable oil import to go up by over 11 per cent to 6.06 million tonnes this year. Of this, the maximum will be palm oil. Oilseed production is estimated to witness a marginal increase at 34.74 million tonnes this year, it said.