Castor and guar — industrial seed depth
Two products anchor Kehkashan's industrial book: castor (Ricinus communis) and guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba). Castor feeds the oleochemical and pharmaceutical chain; guar feeds oil and gas drilling muds, food hydrocolloids and textile sizing. Variety codes drive pricing as on alfalfa and chilli.
Top buying countries
China, Türkiye and the United States lead castor crusher demand. Brazil and India consume domestically and re-export. The United States, Canada and Saudi Arabia buy guar gum-grade for oil and gas. Europe, Korea and Japan take guar splits for food-hydrocolloid lines. The UAE re-exports both regionally.
Key variety codes to know
Castor: GCH-7, GCH-4, DCH-32, DCH-177, Kranti, TMV-5 from Gujarat, Andhra and Tamil Nadu. Guar: HG-365, HG-563, RGC-936, RGC-1066, RGC-1031 from Rajasthan and Sindh. Each lot carries a COA on oil content (castor) or galactomannan (guar) plus moisture.
Logistics overview
Industrial seed ships from Jebel Ali in 50 kg PP bag or 1 MT FIBC jumbo, 22 to 25 metric tonnes per 20-foot container. Lead time runs 14 to 21 days from PO confirmation. FCL is the default. LCL is reserved for sample programs and trial lots below 20 metric tonnes.
Quality assurance protocol
Every castor lot carries oil content (46 to 50%), moisture (under 8%), FFA (under 2%) and a hand-pick purity check. Every guar lot ships with purity (98 to 99%), moisture (under 10%), galactomannan (around 30%) and FFA on a referee basis. SGS or Bureau Veritas counter-sampling is welcome.
Sourcing mix and origin discipline
India is the year-round castor and guar anchor through Gujarat, Rajasthan and Andhra mandis. Pakistan back-fills on guar at competitive freight. Brazil is the Latin American castor origin. Libya and Cuba ship niche castor lots on inquiry. Multi-origin consolidation lands on one bill of lading.
Pricing tiers driven by oil content and galactomannan
Castor pricing tracks oil content and ricinoleic acid percentage. GCH-7 at 47 to 50 percent oil prices above DCH-32 at 46 to 48 percent. Guar pricing tracks galactomannan around 30 percent and FFA. Gum-grade splits price above whole seed for the gum mill. Indian and Pakistani origin discount-curves track Rajasthan mandi closes.
Buyer profiles we serve
Chinese castor crushers buy GCH-7 in 40-foot FCL on a quarterly contract. Turkish oleochemical refiners run mixed-origin loads. American oil and gas service firms buy gum-grade guar splits on a monthly call. Korean and Japanese food-hydrocolloid manufacturers buy guar gum-grade against pharma-grade COA. UAE re-exporters rotate both regionally.
Sample-first policy on industrial seed
Every new castor or guar programme starts with a 500 g to 1 kg sample courier and a draft COA confirming oil content, FFA and moisture on castor; galactomannan, purity and FFA on guar. Crusher confirmation runs against the COA before PO. Sample fees credit against the first FCL on contract acceptance and dispatch.