India breaks into the top 10 list of agri produce exporters

What is the News?

The World Trade Organization(WTO) has released a report on the trends in World Agricultural Trade in the past 25 years.

Key Findings of the Report:

 Agricultural Exports:

• India has entered into the top 10 list of agricultural produce exporters in 2019 with a sizable share in the export of rice, cotton, soya beans, and meat.
  • In 2019, India with a 3.1% share in global agri exports replaced New Zealand as the ninth largest agri exporter.
• The US, which was the largest Agri exporter in 1995(22%), was overtaken by the European Union in 2019(16.1%). The US’s share fell to 13.8% in 2019.
• Brazil maintained its ranking as the third-largest exporter increasing its share from 4.8% in 1995 to 7.8% in 2019.
• China climbed from the sixth spot in 1995 (4%) to fourth in 2019 (5.4%).

Rice Exports:

• The top rice exporters in 1995 included Thailand (38%), India (26%), and the US (19%).
• In 2019, India (33%) overtook Thailand (20%) to top the list while Vietnam(12%) overtook the US to the third spot.
• The top 10 exporters accounted for more than 96% of exports in both 1995 and 2019.

Other Agri Exports:

• Cotton: India was the third-largest cotton exporter (7.6%) and the fourth-largest importer (10%) in 2019. It had not featured in the top 10 list in 1995.
• Soya Bean: Soya Bean is the largest traded agri product. India (0.1%) has a meager share in the Soya Bean trade but was ranked ninth in the world.
• Meat and Edible Meat: India has been ranked eighth in the world with a 4% share in global trade.
• Wheat and Meslin: While India was the seventh-largest wheat and meslin exporter in 1995, it does not feature in the top 10 list in 2019.

Concerns:

• India lagged behind as a value-added contributor to world agri exports.
• India’s share of foreign value-added content in its agri exports was also low at 3.8% primarily due to high tariffs on agri imports to protect the domestic market.