Bangladesh to increase wheat imports in 2025/26 despite record rice harvest

The US Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service has forecasted a 2.6% increase in Bangladesh's milled rice production to 37.55 million tonnes for the marketing year 2025-26, due to improved production outlook. The total rice consumption is expected to slightly increase to 38 million tonnes. In response to higher rice prices, the import tariff has been reduced to 2%, and imports for 2025-26 are projected to decrease to 600,000 tonnes. Wheat imports are predicted to increase slightly to 6.9 million tonnes, with the private sector accounting for 90% of these imports. Corn production is expected to remain steady at 5.8 million tonnes, and imports are expected to increase to 1.6 million tonnes to meet demand.

Milled rice production from Bangladesh’s three distinct growing seasons is forecast to reach 37.55 million tonnes in marketing year 2025-26, up 2.6% from the previous year’s estimated 36.6 million tonnes for the country’s largest grain crop, according to a report from the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture. The FAS forecasts 2025-26 total rice consumption at 38 million tonnes, a slight increase from the 2024-25 estimate of 37.8 million, based on population and increasing use of rice in the feed industry. To help meet demand amid higher rice prices, the import tariff has been reduced to 2% and imports for 2025-26 are projected to be 600,000 tonnes, down 800,000 tonnes year on year based on the improved production outlook. Bangladesh is the world’s third largest producer of rice behind China and India. The demand for wheat as food continues to grow as rice prices remain high in the domestic market, while the use of wheat in the animal feed ...