New Delhi, Aug 24 (IANS): The government should promote hybrid varieties of mustard that can boost yield by more than 10 percent and help in saving foreign currency by cutting imports of edible oil, according to Mustard Research and Promotion Consortium (MRPC).

MRPC assistant director Pragya Gupta said the use of modern technology in extraction and hybrid varieties could substantially boost domestic output of mustard oil.

“In view of the recent slide in the value of rupee, this is very important. We must boost mustard oil output to reduce our dependence on imported edible oil,” Gupta said.

The Indian rupee has lost almost 20 percent of its value against US dollar largely due to widening current account deficit. It touched a record low of 65.56 against a dollar Thursday.

Widening trade deficit due to high imports is among the important reasons behind the high current account deficit that hit a record high of nearly $90 billion in 2012-13.

“Mustard oil along with other indigenous edible oil can be the backbone of Indian oil economy. Naturally processed Indian mustard oil, because of its unique fatty acid profile, backed by a chemical free method of manufacturing, is by far the healthiest cooking oil,” said Gupta.

“Mustard has the potential of being the national crop and saving the valuable foreign exchange of the country,” she said.