Soybean output may dip to 2%; MP, Rajasthan to cushion Maharashtra losses

India's soybean production is expected to decline marginally by 2.11 per cent to 107.93 lakh tonnes in the ongoing Kharif season despite drought-like conditions in several regions, the Soybean Processors Association of India (SOPA) has said.

Higher output in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan will likely largely offset crop losses in Maharashtra, according to the association's first crop estimate report.

The data was shared during the concluding session of SOPA's international soybean conference in Indore on Saturday.

Soybean is a key oilseed crop that provides domestic cooking oil and a protein base for the livestock and poultry industries.

Overall production is estimated to decline by 2.11 per cent from the previous season, the association said.

It attributed the losses in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana to prolonged dry spells and moisture deficiency during critical stages of crop growth.

Soybean crops sown across a combined 7.02 lakh hectares in these three states were completel