New Delhi: The Bharat International Rice Conference (BIRC) 2026 has generated business worth an estimated Rs 50,000 crore (yaani about Rs 500 billion), with strong participation from international buyers and several major rice export contracts, according to Prem Garg, President of the Indian Rice Exporters Federation (IREF). Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of the three-day conference in New Delhi, Garg said the business generated had exceeded expectations, although the final value of transactions was yet to be confirmed as several participants had not disclosed their transaction values.

Source: ANI, via NewKerala

Highlighting the scale of deals negotiated at the conference, Garg said one buyer had entered into a contract for around 100,000 tonnes of basmati rice at approximately USD 1,200 per tonne, including cost, insurance and freight, taking the estimated contract value to around USD 120 million. He highlighted growing interest in Indian rice from overseas markets, particularly Iraq, where demand for basmati remains significant.

Source: ANI, via Indian Economic Observer

Rs 50,000 croreEstimated business at BIRC 2026 (IREF estimate, final value unconfirmed)
100,000 tonnesSingle basmati contract cited by IREF, worth about USD 120 million
40%India's share of global rice exports, per APEDA official at the conference

Garg said improved shipping arrangements were helping exporters cut logistics costs: a shipping initiative had reduced freight costs from around USD 300 per tonne through containers to approximately USD 100 per tonne using vessels, with shipments reaching Iraq's Umm Qasr port from India within seven days. On domestic production, he dismissed concerns of a major decline, estimating this year's rice crop at around 149-150 million tonnes, compared with 154 million tonnes last year, and said he expects rice prices to moderate soon.

At the same conference, Tarun Bajaj, General Manager at the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), said India accounts for around 40 per cent of global rice exports, making the country a key supplier for international food security, according to a SarkariTel report from the event. Industry representatives also cited Food Corporation of India buffer stocks of around 5.5-6 crore tonnes as a source of food security.

Source: SarkariTel

The conference, held in New Delhi from October 23 to 25, brought together exporters, international buyers and officials across the rice value chain. Awaaz Punjab had reported the conference's opening earlier this week; the business figures announced at its close are the organisers' and federation's estimates, not audited totals.