Currently, the average retail price of wheat is ₹31.7/kg and that of atta is ₹37.02/kg, according to Consumer Affairs Ministry data
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VIJAY SONEJI
The Food Ministry has forwarded a demand of the flour millers to the Commerce Ministry to allow the export of wheat products such as atta, sooji and maida, starting with a 1 million tonnes (mt) cap. The government has banned the export of these products in 2022.
In an office memorandum on November 12, the Food Ministry requested the Directorate-General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) “to take further necessary action as deemed appropriate” to the demand for lifting the ban.
In light of ample domestic availability of wheat, the Roller Flour Millers’ Federation of India requested that permission be granted to export wheat products. It said there was a suggestion by the industry body to initially allow a minimum 1 mt. The millers’ association said that currently there is a surplus in the country and the production outlook is also strong.
30 mt procurement
India’s wheat production in 2024-25 was a record 117.54 mt, and the government has set a target of 119 mt output in 2025-26. According to latest data compiled by the Agriculture Ministry, the sown area under wheat as of November 7 was 22.72 lakh hectare (lh) against 9.98 lh a year ago.
The government procured 30 mt of wheat from the 2024-25 harvest, the highest in four years, and due to the ban on wheat and wheat products since 2022, it has been able to check prices, except for a brief period.
Currently, the average retail price of wheat is ₹31.7/kg and that of atta is ₹37.02/kg, according to Consumer Affairs Ministry data. The current prices are 3-4 per cent higher from same period three years ago, although the minimum support price of wheat has been raised by 22 per cent during the past four years.
Catering to diaspora
Industry sources said that though it is already late as many flour mills have come up in the Middle East since 2022 to cater to the demand of 40-million strong Indian diaspora across the world, allowing wheat products will help millers to generate extra demand from the exporters.
There are many Indian brands which may be able to re-start their export business if wheat products are allowed since the diaspora prefer to buy a domestic product with whom they can identify themselves, said a former top official of the industry body. If 1 mt of wheat products export allowed now, may be 0.4-0.5 mt could be exported in the current fiscal, the official said.
Published on November 14, 2025