NCDEX will launch Guar Korma futures on July 24, 2026, providing exporters, processors and animal feed manufacturers with a SEBI-regulated platform to hedge price risks. According to reports from The Economic Times, the exchange will introduce contracts with expiries from September 2026 to January 2027, with subsequent contracts to be launched as per its contract calendar. The futures contract will be based ex-warehouse Jodhpur, have a trading and delivery unit of 5 metric tonnes, and will be compulsorily deliverable on expiry. As per NCDEX Chief Business Officer Kedar Deshpande, this move completes the exchange-traded ecosystem for India's guar value chain, which already has futures contracts for guar seed and guar gum, while Guar Korma remained outside the ambit of regulated price risk management.
As reported by The Economic Times, India is the world's largest producer and exporter of guar and guar-derived products, but Guar Korma has remained without an organised mechanism for price discovery and risk management. India processes nearly 80% of the world's guar seed and guar derivatives and is the largest exporter of Guar Korma, which is widely used as a high-protein ingredient in cattle, poultry, fishery and piggery feed. The product competes with soymeal, cottonseed oil cake and mustard-based protein meals in global feed markets. According to NCDEX, Guar Korma is the high-protein by-product of guar gum extraction, containing protein levels of up to 55% after roasting, and has emerged as a cost-effective feed ingredient in international markets. The new futures contract will enable transparent price discovery and effective risk management for guar korma for the first time, helping exporters lock in prices and improving market efficiency across the guar value chain.
According to The Economic Times, Guar Korma prices are influenced by multiple factors, including guar processing economics, fluctuations in competing protein feed ingredients and changing demand from overseas livestock industries. The absence of a benchmark futures market has often exposed exporters and processors to significant price volatility. As per NCDEX, the new contract is expected to help exporters lock in prices against confirmed overseas orders, processors hedge inventory during crushing and export cycles, and domestic feed manufacturers access a transparent reference price discovered through exchange trading. For exporters shipping to Europe on long delivery timelines, futures contracts provide an effective tool to hedge the price risk between signing export contracts and executing deliveries. The launch comes at a time when international buyers, particularly in Europe, are increasingly seeking natural, non-GMO protein alternatives to soymeal.
As reported by The Economic Times, Guar Korma is one of the three products obtained during guar seed processing, alongside guar gum and guar churi. Norway, the Netherlands, Germany, China and the United Kingdom have been among the largest importers of India's Guar Korma over the past five years, with demand driven largely by the European dairy industry. The launch comes at a time when international buyers, particularly in Europe, are increasingly seeking natural, non-GMO protein alternatives to soymeal. The move is expected to support India's export-driven guar industry amid volatile global feed markets and provide exporters with effective hedging tools for their long-term delivery commitments.
