PRODUCT CLASSIFICATION
Rice is one of the most essential staple foods worldwide, known for its scale, cultural importance and sensitivity to climate and policy changes. It’s fundamental in food security, trade and rural economies, and its demand is driven by population growth, urbanization and evolving dietary habits.
It’s available in many varieties, such as long grain, short grain, basmati, Rome and jasmine. It can be found in many forms, from daily meals to processed products, and its production depends on weather conditions and government support.
Rice is a part of Cereals, a category of the Vegetable Products section that includes a wide variety of related by-products like Rice, semi-milled or wholly milled, Rice, broken, Rice, husked (brown), and Rice in the husk (paddy or rough).
It also has a Product Complexity Index of -1.59, ranking 972nd out of 1044 products in 2023.
This post will not consider a specific country’s market, but it will be focused on the Rice trade in general
OVERVIEW
In 2023, global trade of Rice reached an amount of $34.2B, reflecting an increased percentage of 0.52 from 2022, when it totaled $34B and, over the past five years, it has grown at an annualized rate of 4.42%.
In addition, during the same year, Rice ranked 127 out of 1217 products, accounting for 0.15% of world trade.
EXPORT
In 2023 it was estimated that the main characters in the exportation scenario of Rice were
- India - $11.4B;
- Thailand - $5.3B;
- Vietnam - $3.88B.
Also, during the same year, the countries that registered the highest share of this category in their export portfolios were
- Pakistan - 6.89%;
- Djibouti - 6.15%;
- Uruguay - 5.64%.
IMPORT
In 2023 it was revealed that the leading importers of the Rice category in global trade were
- Indonesia - $1.76B;
- Saudi Arabia - $1.67B;
- Philippines - $1.62B.
CONCLUSIONS
In 2023 the Rice trade experienced notable challenges, including climate-related disruption and export restrictions but, despite these difficulties, a general growth can be identified.
With rising demand and ongoing innovation in farming practices, Rice continues to be at the base of global agriculture and, if sustainable practices and resilience are prioritized, this market can manifest a long-term path.
Source: https://oec.world/en
