A recently released World Trade Organization (WTO) report has ranked India 9th (holding 3.1% share in global agriculture exports) among the Top 10 list of Agricultural produce exporters in 2019. European Union (EU) with a global share of 16.1% has replaced the US as the World’s largest Agriculture produce exporter (13.8%).
- The report states that India holds a significant share in the export of rice, cotton, soya beans and meat. India replaced New Zealand at the 9th rank.
- The WTO report documents the trends in World Agricultural Trade in the past 25 years (from 1995). It compares the rankings & share of global agriculture exports in 1995 to the same in 2019.
Top Global Agriculture Export Countries
| Rank | Country | Share of Global Agriculture Exports in 2019 (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | India | 3.1 |
| 1 | European Union | 16.1 |
| 2 | US | 13.8 |
| 3 | Brazil | 7.8 |
Key Points
i.In 1995, the US was the world’s leading Agri exporter with 22.2% share.
ii.China has jumped from the sixth spot in 1995 (4%) to 4th in 2019 (5.4%).
iii.Brazil maintained its rank as 3rd Largest exporter, increasing its share from 4.8% in 1995 to 7.8% in 2019.
iv.Mexico was ranked 7th in the list replacing Malaysia. It held a global agriculture export share of 3.4%.
Rankings in rice, cotton, etc., Exports
i.The Top rice exporters in 1995 were Thailand (38%), India (26%) and US (19%).
- In 2019, India (33%) topped the list, followed by Thailand (20%) & Vietnam (12%).
- The Top 10 exporters accounted for more than 96% of exports in both 1995 & 2019.
| Rank | Country | Share of Global Rice Exports in 2019 (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 33 |
| 2 | Thailand | 20 |
| 3 | Vietnam | 12 |
ii.India was the 3rd largest cotton exporter (7.6%), and the 4th largest cotton importer (10%) in 2019. It had not featured in the Top 10 list in 1995.
iii.The largest traded agriculture product was Soya Beans, India had a meagre 0.1% global share in it. But it was ranked 9th in the world.
iv.In the ‘meat and edible meat offal’ category, India was ranked 8th in the world with a 4% share in global trade.
v.India was the 7th largest wheat and meslin exporter in 1995, but does feature in the Top 10 list in 2019.
India lags behind in Value-added Contribution
India has lagged behind as a value-added contributor to World Agriculture Exports.
- India’s share of foreign value-added content in agri exports stood at 3.8%, it is mainly due to high tariffs on agri imports to protect the domestic market.
India among 5 Countries that account for 75% of COVID-19 Vaccine Production
During a high-level dialogue, WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has stated that 5 members of the WTO namely India, Germany, US, France and China will account for 75% of the entire global output of COVID-19 vaccines in 2021.
Recent Related News:
i.May 17, 2021, MCCIA in partnership with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) launched India’s 1st Agriculture Export Facilitation Center (AEFC) in Pune, Maharashtra.
ii.June 11, 2021, India’s export of agriculture and allied products increased by 17.34% to USD 41.25 Billion during 2020-21.
About World Trade Organization (WTO)
Director-General – Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
Headquarters – Geneva, Switzerland
