India’s Department of Consumer Affairs has banned the exportation of non-basmati white rice worldwide just 10 months after it added 20 per cent duties to exports.
The halt on international exports from India comes in an attempt to slow rising domestic prices after an extended stint of unpredictable weather disrupted rice production. The price of rice is expected to rise globally as a result.
According to the Department of Consumer Affairs, non-basmati white rice accounts for close to 25 per cent of total rice exported from the country.
But retail prices in India increased by 11.5 per cent over a year, and three per cent over the last month, the ministry said in a statement.
The ban will preserve the “adequate availability of non basmati white rice in the Indian market,” and “allay the rise in prices in the domestic market,” the statement continued.
According to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, India accounts for more than 40 per cent of the world’s rice exports, making India the second largest producer of rice, after China.
News of the ban raised alarm bells among rice retailers and shop owners, who according to reports, are already running low on supplies in parts of the Greater Toronto Areas.
The ban means delivery contracts, which tend to be agreed months ahead of time, likely won’t be fulfilled.
As a result, COVID-like limitations on the amount of rice people can purchase are already in place at some suppliers.
Canada relies heavily on India for its rice supply, as it is not grown domestically. The length of the ban remains unknown, but prices will likely continue to rise.
