Global production and export of rice is expected to reach new record levels

27-Jun-2025 07:55 PM

London. The International Grain Council (IGC) has projected that global rice production will reach a new record level of 544 million tonnes in the 2025-26 marketing season, which is 3 million tonnes more than the estimated 541 million tonnes in the 2024-25 season.

India is expected to play a key role in this growth. Previously, global rice production was estimated at 525 million tonnes in the 2023-24 season and 517 million tonnes in the 2022-23 season.

The IGC has also projected that global rice trade will rise by 1 million tonnes, reaching a peak of 60 million tonnes in the 2025-26 season, up from 59 million tonnes in 2024-25 and 58 million tonnes in 2023-24. Major rice-exporting countries include India, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, Myanmar, and the USA, while top importers are the Philippines, Indonesia, China, and several African nations.

India has remained the world’s largest exporter of rice for the past 12–13 years and has now overtaken China as the largest producer.

According to the Council’s report, global rice consumption is expected to be 534 million tonnes in the 2024-25 season and may increase to 541 million tonnes in 2025-26. However, this will still be 3 million tonnes less than the projected production, resulting in a surplus.

Due to this surplus, the global ending stock of rice is expected to grow. The IGC estimates that the total global rice stock will rise to 182 million tonnes by the end of the 2025-26 season,

compared to an expected 179 million tonnes at the end of 2024-25. In India, Kharif paddy cultivation has begun, and the harvesting of the new crop is expected to start from October 2025.