The launch extends NCDEX’s regulated futures ecosystem beyond guar seed and guar gum, creating the country’s first exchange-based hedging instrument for Guar Korma.

NCDEX Ltd. has announced the launch of Guar Korma Futures (GUARKORMA), introducing India’s first exchange-traded futures contract for the high-protein guar derivative. Scheduled to commence trading on July 24, 2026, the contract is designed to provide exporters, processors and livestock feed manufacturers with a transparent, regulated mechanism for price discovery and risk management in a commodity where India dominates global production and exports. At launch, futures contracts with expiries from September 2026 through January 2027 will be available, with additional contract months to be introduced in line with the exchange’s contract calendar. The contract will be based ex-warehouse Jodhpur, feature a trading unit of five metric tonnes, and involve compulsory delivery upon expiry, extending the same institutional framework already established for guar seed and guar gum futures to the third major product in the guar value chain.

Announcing the launch, Kedar Deshpande, Chief Business Officer, NCDEX, said the new contract addresses a longstanding gap in India’s agricultural derivatives market by bringing organised price discovery to a strategically important export commodity.

“India is the world’s largest producer and exporter of Guar and Guar-derivative products, with Guar Korma playing a critical role in the animal feed industry as a high-protein feed ingredient. Yet the price risk in it has been entirely unmanaged. With GUARKORMA futures, we are extending the same organized, SEBI-regulated price discovery mechanism that has served guar seed and guar gum to this export-critical byproduct, giving processors and exporters a genuine tool to protect their margins. For exporters shipping to Europe on extended timelines, the gap between contracting a price and delivering the cargo is where the real risk sits. A transparent futures market lets them close that gap. It also strengthens price transmission back to the farm gate, connecting guar growers in Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana more directly to the value being created downstream in this export chain,” he said.

India currently processes nearly 80 per cent of the world’s guar seed and guar derivatives and remains the largest global exporter of Guar Korma, a protein-rich by-product generated during guar gum extraction. Despite its growing significance in international feed markets, the commodity has until now lacked an organised exchange-based platform for hedging price volatility. Unlike many agricultural commodities, Guar Korma prices are influenced by a complex interplay of domestic processing economics, international demand for guar derivatives and the availability of competing protein sources such as soymeal and cottonseed oil cake. Demand patterns from the dairy, poultry, aquaculture and piggery industries across importing countries further contribute to market volatility, making effective price-risk management increasingly important for exporters and processors.

The introduction of regulated futures is expected to enable exporters to lock in forward prices against confirmed overseas shipments while allowing processors to hedge inventory risks between crushing operations and export cycles. Livestock feed manufacturers will also gain access to an exchange-discovered benchmark price, improving procurement planning and market transparency across the value chain. The new contract is expected to enhance the competitiveness of India’s guar-based protein exports at a time when global feed markets are witnessing rising demand for natural, vegetarian and non-GMO protein alternatives to conventional ingredients such as soymeal. Countries including Norway, the Netherlands, Germany, China and the United Kingdom have emerged as key export destinations, with the European dairy industry accounting for a significant share of international demand.

Guar Korma is one of the three principal products derived from guar seed milling, alongside guar gum and guar churi. With a protein content of up to 55 per cent after roasting, it has become an important ingredient in cattle, poultry, fish and pig feed, offering a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to conventional plant-based protein sources. The launch further strengthens NCDEX’s agricultural derivatives portfolio while reinforcing the role of commodity futures in improving price transparency, strengthening supply-chain resilience and supporting India’s position as the global hub for guar-based products.