Foodgrain Production Target Set at 373.93 Million Tonnes for 2026-27 Season

New Delhi: In view of the threat posed by the El Niño weather cycle, the Central Government has slightly lowered the foodgrain production target for the 2026-27 marketing season to 373.93 million tonnes; this is approximately 2.63 million tonnes less than the actual production achieved in the 2025-26 season. According to official data, the target for the 2025-26 season was set at 362.60 million tonnes, but favorable weather and monsoon conditions led to actual production rising to a record level of 376.56 million tonnes. Nevertheless, the production target set for the 2026-27 season remains significantly higher than the target originally set for the 2025-26 season.

Ongoing drought conditions in parts of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Rajasthan have raised concerns about the potential impact on foodgrain production. Furthermore, the El Niño weather cycle is steadily intensifying. Its impact is expected to persist until April-May 2027, fueling concerns regarding Rabi season crops as well. Despite this, the production target for Rabi foodgrains has been set at 177.72 million tonnes.

During a two-day national conference held for the Rabi campaign, the Union Agriculture Minister stated that this production target was determined based on inputs (feedback) received from the states. He expressed optimism that there would be no significant decline in Kharif foodgrain production this year, noting that output could remain normal despite the challenges posed by El Niño, drought, and floods. It is noteworthy that the actual food grain production during the 2025-26 Rabi season stood at 17.451 crore tonnes, whereas the production target set for the 2026-27 Rabi season is higher than that figure. According to the Agriculture Minister, although there was a decline in the area under cultivation for certain crops during the Kharif season, the total cultivated area came very close to that of the previous year.