There are three major issues with respect to castor yield and productivity challenges. They are

• Castor cultivation of crop on marginal lands without inputs (fertilizers and irrigation) produces poor yields
• Lack of improved varieties and hybrids
• Lack of mechanization in cultivation & harvesting

Toxicity Challenge

• The ricin in castor crop is a barrier to its cultivation in many developed countries – especially US and parts of Europe
• GM castor with no ricin could be a solution

Apart from this, there are other challenges faced in castor industry. They are:

• Difficulty in further expansion of area in India primarily due to lack of seed marketing to non-traditional areas
• Grown under rain-fed condition without following improved package of practices
• Lack of suitable cultivars for intercropping system
• Lack of resistant/ tolerant varieties/hybrids for eating caterpillars and macrophomma disease