India increased imports of Russian agro-products 22 times, mainly due to peas

According to data released during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Moscow, India increased imports of Russian grain and grain products 22 times in 2023/24 MY, Reuters reports.

Modi thanked Putin for supporting Indian farmers with stable fertilizer supplies. At the beginning of the year, Russia supplied a third of India’s fertilizer imports.

“Thanks to our friendship, we have managed to solve the difficulties for Indian farmers. We have met all their fertilizer needs. This is the special role of our friendship,” Modi told Putin during a meeting in the Kremlin.

Indian Foreign Minister Vineet Mohan Kwatra said on Tuesday that Russia and India have set a target of $100 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, up from the current $65 billion.

In a joint statement released after the talks, Russia and India said they are committed to further developing bilateral trade in agriculture and fertilizers, pledging to ease existing phytosanitary and veterinary barriers.

Data released by the Russian Agriculture Supervision Service showed that in the 2023/24 agricultural season, Russia exported up to 89.3 million tons of grain and grain products, up 21% from the previous season.

India, with its 22-fold increase, was far ahead of Indonesia with an eight-fold increase and Tunisia with a three-fold increase. According to the Russian Ministry of Agriculture, in the first quarter of 2024, Russia was the fourth largest exporter of agricultural products to India.

In a separate commentary to Reuters, the agricultural watchdog noted that the 22-fold increase was mainly due to pea exports and a threefold increase in lentil exports.

As a reminder, at the end of 2023, it became known that India allowed duty-free imports of yellow peas until March 31, 2024.

Tags: Russia, India, pea