Edible oil refining waste is not excisable when it is only incidental residue and covered by the waste and refuse exemption.

Waste arising in the refining of edible oil was held to be non-excisable because it was not a manufactured product but an incidental residue removed from crude oil. The Tribunal applied the larger Bench view that sale value alone does not determine excisability, and treated the material as waste and refuse covered by the exemption notification. On that basis, the waste generated during the refining process was not liable to excise duty, the impugned order was set aside, and the appeal was allowed.

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Issues: Whether the waste emerging during the refining of edible oil was liable to excise duty or was covered by the exemption for waste and refuse.

Analysis: The Tribunal followed the larger bench view that the ability of a product to fetch value is not decisive for excisability. In refining of vegetable oil, the unwanted materials removed from the crude oil result in waste and not in manufactured excisable goods. Such incidental products are treated as waste arising in the course of manufacture and fall within the exemption meant for waste and refuse.

Conclusion: The waste generated during refining was not exigible to duty and was covered by the exemption notification.

Final Conclusion: The impugned order was set aside and the appeal was allowed.

Ratio Decidendi: A residue arising from the refining process, which is not itself produced by a manufacturing process, is to be treated as waste and not as an excisable manufactured product merely because it may have sale value.

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