India’s Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) has developed a high-yielding sunflower hybrid variety which can be grown in rain-fed areas and is moderately disease resistant, UkrAgroConsult reported on 6 January.
The COH3 sunflower variety has a 42% oil content and could yield 716kg/ha, which is 200-250kg higher than traditional varieties, according to the university.
Farmers could expect returns of Rs30-50 (US$0.40-U$0.70)/kg of oilseed depending on the market. “This is in the seed stage. This variety is also moderately resistant to crop diseases such as necrosis, powdery mildew and alternia and tolerant to insects like sucking pests and leaf feeders,” TNAU said.
“The 90-day duration of this variety requires some irrigation, but it can grow in rain-fed areas like Namakkal, Erode, Karur, Virudhunagar and Coimbatore.”
UkrAgroConsult wrote that India currently imported most of its sunflower oil from Ukraine, Russia and Argentina.
