Rice exporters' body pegs FY25 basmati shipments at record $6 bln
Informist, Wednesday, Sep 18, 2024
By Sandeep Sinha
MUMBAI – India's basmati rice exports are set to exceed $6 bln in 2024-25 (Apr-Mar), the first time ever, Prem Garg, national president of the Indian Rice Exporters Federation, told Informist. Exports of the commodity in 2023-24 stood at $5.84 bln, the top foreign exchange earner among agricultural commodities.
In the current financial year, basmati rice exports got off to a good start, with shipments in Apr-Jul rising 19.1% on year to 1.92 ml tn. In value terms, the growth was nearly 15% at $2.03 bln.
Garg welcomed the government's decision to do away with the minimum export price for basmati, saying traders could now pass on a part of the extra profit to farmers. The price of basmati paddy, which stood at 25 rupees per kg in mandis, had now risen to 31 rupees per kg, he said.
India produces 75% of the world's basmati rice, according to the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority. The country's share in global basmati rice exports in Jan-Jul was 86.9%, with Pakistan accounting for the rest.
Demand for basmati rice from West Asia is huge – the region accounts for nearly 77% of India's overall basmati rice exports. Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia are the biggest importers of Indian basmati rice, both in value and volume terms.
In the previous kharif season, basmati rice acreage in India was over 2.14 mln ha, and production was 9.85 mln tn, according to data analysed by Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority. The aromatic rice is grown in the foothills of the Himalayas in Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh. End
