Two consignments 4.5 MT of patented ‘village rice’ collected from Kumbakonam, Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu by a start-up, Udaya Agro Farm has been exported to Ghana & Yemen via air and sea routes and this is a major thrust to India’s non-basmati rice exports potential.
Enriched with protein, fibre, and various minerals, ‘village rice’ is gathered directly from farmers of Thanjavur, also famous as the rice bowl of Tamil Nadu. APEDA backed Udaya Agro Farm plans to do an increment in the volume of exports of ‘village rice’ in the coming months.
During FY 2020-21, the shipment of non-basmati rice observed a spectacular increase. The non-basmati rice exports earned a revenue of around Rs. 35,448 crore (4796 US$ Million) during April-March, 2021 against the reported Rs. 14,400 crore (2020 US$ Million) earning during April-March, 2020 period. The exports of non-Basmati have seen a growth of 146 % in terms of Rupee and 137 % in terms of Dollar in 2020-2021.
At the start of this month, a consignment of rice was exported from the Paradip International Cargo Terminal, Odisha to Vietnam. This marked the first time in recent years when non-basmati rice was exported from Paradip Port.
In March 2021, the first consignment of ‘red rice’ from Assam was exported to the USA. Iron-rich red rice’ is grown in the Brahmaputra valley of Assam, without utilizing any kind of chemical fertilizer. The rice variety is called as ‘Bao-dhaan’, which is an indispensable part of Assamese food.
The sharp increase in rice exports particularly during an era where the global COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the supply changes many commodities has been attributed to the government taking prompt steps to make sure that rice is being exported while following all the needed COVID-19 related safety precautions.
APEDA is working with numerous stakeholders such as farmers, entrepreneurs, exporters and importers worldwide to harness India’s non-basmati rice export potential.
APEDA has encouraged rice exports through partnerships with various stakeholders in the value chains. The government had established the Rice Export Promotion Forum (REPF), under the aegis of the APEDA. REPF has representations from the rice industry, exporters, and officials from APEDA, ministry of commerce, and directors of agriculture from leading rice-producing states including West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha.
