Centre slashes FCI share of broken rice to boost ethanol production

Beginning this kharif marketing season in October, millers in five states will be required to deliver rice with no more than 10 per cent broken grains, compared to the current Food Corporation of India (FCI) norm of 25 per cent, for procurement under the public distribution system -- a move that will free 15 per cent broken rice for ethanol production.

 

The announcement was made by Sanjeev Chopra, secretary in the Department of Food and Public Distribution, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, on Monday at the fourth Siam International Conference on World Biofuel Day.

 

Chopra’s remarks come amid heightened social media discussions about the impact of E20 fuel (in which petrol is blended with 20 per cent ethanol) on the fuel efficiency and engines of cars.

 

Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said last Friday that no engine failures had been reported since the E20 blend’s rollout and that the performance impact was minimal, at around 1-3 per cent.

 

Chopra also said that achieving E20 blending by 2025, five years ahead of the 2030 deadline, was a “great achievement,” and a government committee was now preparing the roadmap beyond E20, towards E27 or E30.

 

The Ethanol push

 

To ensure a steady feedstock supply for ethanol, Chopra announced that from the next kharif marketing season -- that starts in October-- five states including Punjab, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh, millers will be required to deliver rice with no more than “10 per cent broken” grains.

 

“The surplus 15 per cent broken rice will be auctioned directly at the mill for ethanol production,” he said, adding, “This will ensure a sustainable supply of broken rice to the fuel industry, and if successful, we can ramp it up from 2026–27.”

 

The change will also reduce FCI’s storage and transport burden, as this portion will no longer enter the central pool.

 

When rice mills process paddy for the FCI, around 20-25 per cent of the output is broken grains. Under the new procurement norms, FCI will now accept up to 10 per cent broken rice, leaving the surplus -- about 15 per cent -- with the millers. This 15 per cent portion would be auctioned to ethanol plants by the millers.

 

Chopra credited the National Biofuel Policy of 2018 for allowing the diversion of not only molasses but also sugarcane juice and grain for ethanol production, enabling blending to rise from 1.5 per cent in 2013 to 20 per cent last month.  ALSO READ: ED files supplementary prosecution complaint in Amtek Auto bank fraud case

 

“Having achieved the E20 blending, where do we go from here? Do we look at E22? Do we look at E27? Do we look at E30? That is something which is being worked out by an inter-departmental committee framing the roadmap beyond E20,” Chopra said at a SIAM event.

 

The ethanol blending programme has brought prosperity to rural areas and eliminated the need for subsidies that once kept the sugar sector afloat, he said.

 

On feedstock diversification, Chopra said molasses will remain a key source despite fluctuations in sugarcane production, with 30-40 million metric tonnes of sugar diverted annually for ethanol “not being too difficult” even with occasional shortfalls.

 

Turning to maize, he described it as a water-efficient crop grown largely by marginal farmers and increasingly used for ethanol. Output rose from 34 million tonnes (mt) to 37.7 mt last year and is projected at 425 mt this year, though productivity still lags the global average of 6 tonnes per hectare.

 

“The industry must do for maize what it has done for sugarcane and potatoes -- support farmers with quality seeds, extension services, and infrastructure for drying to reduce high moisture content,” he urged, adding that aflatoxin levels in distillers’ dried grains with solubles (DDGS) must be kept in check for feed industry use.

 

Chopra also highlighted sweet sorghum’s potential, especially when intercropped with sugarcane, as it can be processed in existing sugar mill equipment. “One hectare can yield up to 50 tonnes of sweet sorghum, and each tonne can produce around 46 litres of ethanol,” he said. Intercropping sweet sorghum on 25 per cent of sugarcane acreage could contribute 120–130 crore litres of ethanol annually, or about 10 per cent of supply.

 

He concluded that diversifying feedstocks -- from molasses to rice, maize, and sweet sorghum -- is critical for sustaining the ethanol programme as blending targets rise. “With the automotive sector, ethanol producers, sugar mills, grain distilleries, and policymakers working together, we can turn surplus production into sustainable energy, rural growth into national resilience, and agricultural value into green mobility,” Chopra said.