India signs deals to export 500,000 tonnes of basmati rice

A farmer using a combine harvester to harvest paddy in a field at Haidergarh village, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, on Oct 19, 2023. — Reuters

NEW DELHI (Reuters): India has signed contracts to export about 500,000 metric tonnes of new season basmati rice to cash in on robust demand from top buyers in Europe and the Middle East, traders said on Wednesday (Nov 15).

India annually exports more than 4 million tons of basmati - a premium long-grain variety famed for its aroma - to Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the United States, among others.