What is Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA)?
Paper: GS III
Topic: Science and Technology, Developments and their Applications and Effects in Everyday Life.
For Prelims: Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA).
Why in News: Alcohol manufacturers have written to NITI Aayog asking for reduction in import duty.
What is Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA)?
- Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA) is the primary raw material for making alcoholic beverages. It is a colourless food-grade alcohol that does not have any impurities.
- It has a neutral smell and taste, and typically contains over 95% alcohol by volume.
- It is derived from different sources sugarcane molasses and grains and is used in the production of alcoholic beverages such as whisky, vodka, gin, cane, liqueurs, and alcoholic fruit beverages. Like ethanol, ENA is a byproduct of the sugar industry, and is formed from molasses that are a residue of sugarcane processing.
- ENA also serves as an essential ingredient in the manufacture of cosmetics and personal care products such as perfumes, toiletries, hair spray, etc.
- Given its properties as a good solvent, ENA also finds industrial use and is utilised in the production of some lacquers, paints and ink for the printing industry, as well as in pharmaceutical products such as antiseptics, drugs, syrups, medicated sprays.
- Consultancy firm IMARC Group’s estimates put the ENA market in India at a volume of 2.9 billion litres in 2018.
Why asking for reduction in import duty?
- Due to lower supply: In its letter to NITI Aayog anticipating lower supplies, the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies, Anticipating shortage of domestic supplies, they have sought a reduction in duty to make it cost-effective for them to import Extra Neutral Alcohol from global markets.
- Diversion to bio-fuel industry: Due to the diversion of ethanol for bio-fuel blending by oil marketing companies.
- Sugarcane Crop affected: Recent floods in Maharashtra and Karnataka that have adversely affected sugarcane crop in the region.