Bangladesh grain imports likely to rise 22pc

FE Team | Published: June 05, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Bangladesh's grain imports are likely to rise 22 per cent to 1.1 million tonnes in the new financial year beginning in July, as the state grains buyer aims to secure food supplies, reports Reuters.
The state grains purchasing agency will import 0.9 million tonnes of wheat and 0.2 million tonnes of rice in the fiscal year (FY) 2014-15 to ensure food security, said Ahmed Hossain Khan, the head of the Directorate General of Food, on Wednesday. In addition, the government will procure 1.5 million tonnes of rice locally.
"This target has been set for the upcoming fiscal year but it may be changed depending on the food situation," Khan told the news agency.
The imports and procurement are crucial for the South Asian nation to feed its poor and keep domestic prices stable.
In 2008, like many countries Bangladesh suffered as record food prices led to huge cancellation of wheat import deals and sparked protests in a country where a third of the population still lives on less than $2 a day.
"The imports will be made through tenders. At the moment we have no plan to import wheat on a state-to-state deal," Khan said.
The current food situation does not resemble that in 2008, when wheat and rice prices surged to record highs, or that in 2011, when Bangladesh became a major rice importer after its local procurement drive failed, he added. Prices for both wheat and rice on international markets remain lower than historical records.
Bangladesh, the world's fourth-biggest rice producer, consumes almost all its production at home. It aims to produce more than 35 million tonnes of rice in the current year, up from nearly 34 million in the previous year.
Rice is the main staple for Bangladesh's 160 million people, but wheat consumption is also rising due to economic growth and lifestyle changes. It often needs to import rice to cope with shortages caused by floods or droughts.
In addition to the government, private traders also import about 2.5 million tonnes of wheat a year to help meet local demand of 4 million tonnes. Domestic output amounts to about 1 million tonnes.
Its reserves have risen to about 1 million tonnes from 0.85 million tonnes a year earlier. In the current fiscal year, the state buyer imported 0.9 million tonnes of wheat, including 0.2 million tonnes in a government-to-government deal with Ukraine, but no rice was imported. In 2011-12 fiscal year, the government imported a record 2.2 million tonnes of food grains, including 1.4 million tonnes of rice.