An official delegation from Egypt, one of the largest importers of wheat, will visit India from Monday to explore the possibilities of sourcing the grain from India to meet the domestic demand.
Officials from Egypt’s Agricultural Quarantine and Pest Risk Analysis, which imported 6.1 million tonnes (mt) of wheat in 2021, will visit processing units, port facilities and farms in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab during their five-day visit.
Sources told FE that Egypt, which imported about 81 per cent of its wheat imports, estimated to be worth close to $2 billion in 2021, from Russia and Ukraine, has informed Indian officials that it will import a significant quantity from India. I want to buy wheat. India is not in the list of recognized countries that can export wheat to Egypt.
The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has asked India’s wheat exporters to register with Egypt’s public procurement agency, the General Authority for Supplies and Commodities, which manages wheat and sugar imports into the North African country. does.
Sources said that in response to a clarification from Egypt, India has said that the disease of wheat ergot plant has not been reported anywhere in the country.
The Egyptian delegation’s visit to India will be followed by trade talks and meetings with various wheat-importing countries, which are exploring the possibility of sourcing grain from alternative sources as supplies have been disrupted due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. India is aiming to export a record 10 million tonnes of wheat in 2022-23 amid rising global demand.
“We are taking a business delegation to Morocco, Tunisia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Turkey, Algeria and Lebanon to explore possibilities of promoting wheat exports from India,” said APEDA President M Angamuthu.
Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board, which operates the Kakinada anchor port, which is mostly used for rice exports, has informed that the facility can also be used for wheat exports. Presently, due to its proximity to the Kandla and Mundra ports, most of India’s wheat exports come from Madhya Pradesh.
According to the estimates of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, India has exported a record 7 million tonnes of wheat in 2021-22, valued at $2.05 billion. About 50% of the wheat was exported to Bangladesh in the last financial year.
India has been the world’s largest rice exporter over the past decade with export earnings that stood at a record $9.6 billion in 2021-22. But the country has been a relatively minor player in the global wheat trade till 2020-21.
APEDA, which functions under the commerce ministry, has constituted a task force on wheat exports with representatives from various ministries including commerce, shipping and railways and exporters.
The current wheat stock with the Food Corporation of India is almost three times more than the buffer norm, and the ongoing rabi procurement will strengthen the stock. FCI has over 23 million tonnes of wheat stock against the buffer norm of 7 million tonnes as on April 1.
About 33 million tonnes of wheat is likely to be procured from farmers during the procurement season (April-June) by government agencies for the marketing season of 2022-23, with a target of 44 million tonnes due to the potential for an increase in exports.