By Mir Afroz Zaman, DHAKA, POBNEWS24, SEPT 25, 2026 — Bangladesh has resumed large-scale purchases of Indian wheat for the first time since 2022, with importers booking more than 200,000 tonnes since New Delhi lifted export restrictions in late August.
But the return of Indian wheat is not restoring the pre-2022 trade pattern.
Bangladesh is continuing to source wheat from Argentina, Russia, Ukraine, Canada, the United States and Australia, as importers weigh prices, quality, freight costs and supply risks in a global market increasingly disrupted by the Russia-Ukraine war.
Most of the newly booked Indian wheat is expected to reach Bangladesh by rail, with delivered prices reported at around $305-$326 a tonne.
The renewed purchases come as disruptions in the Black Sea are putting pressure on supplies from Russia and Ukraine, two of the world’s major wheat exporters. For Bangladesh, the immediate attraction of Indian wheat is not simply its proximity. It is the combination of competitive pricing and shorter delivery routes at a time when global supply chains are facing renewed uncertainty.
Yet traders are not abandoning other origins.
That reflects a fundamental change in Bangladesh’s wheat market since India imposed export restrictions in May 2022.
A market transformed since 2022
Before the Indian restrictions, Bangladesh obtained nearly 70% of its wheat imports from India, according to market reports.
The ban forced Bangladeshi buyers to develop alternative supply channels. Argentina, Canada, Russia and Ukraine subsequently became important suppliers, while the Black Sea region emerged as a major source of competitively priced wheat.
The shift has become particularly visible in the latest import data.
Bangladesh imported a record 7.4 million tonnes of wheat in the 2025-26 marketing year, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Domestic wheat production meets less than 10% of national demand, leaving the country structurally dependent on imports.
The scale of that dependence makes supply diversification critical for traders and policymakers.
A sudden export restriction by a major supplier, a disruption at a major port or a sharp increase in freight costs can quickly affect Bangladesh’s domestic wheat market.
The Indian ban in 2022 demonstrated how quickly such a policy change can force a restructuring of the country’s import market.
India is back—but the market has changed
India formally moved specified wheat categories from a prohibited to a free export regime on August 24, 2026, after more than four years of restrictions. The policy change also opened exports of wheat flour and related products.
Bangladeshi buyers responded quickly.
More than 200,000 tonnes have been booked since the restrictions were lifted, according to people familiar with the transactions cited by Bloomberg.
But the volumes are still far from restoring India’s former dominance.
One reason is that Bangladesh’s importers have spent the past four years building relationships with suppliers in other producing regions.
Another is that wheat is not a homogeneous commodity.
Quality matters as much as price
Bangladesh’s flour, bakery and food-processing industries require wheat with different protein and gluten characteristics.
Higher-protein wheat is preferred for products requiring stronger flour, while softer wheat is widely used for biscuits, cakes, pastries and other bakery products.
Rishi Krishna Das, a wheat importer at Babubazar, said importers therefore cannot simply replace all other origins with Indian wheat.
“Even if Indian wheat is cheaper or readily available, that does not eliminate the need for Canadian, Russian or other varieties,” Das told this newspaper.
POBNEWS24 | The Politics of Bangladesh online Version | Reg No: 26/98
Bangladesh Resumes Indian Wheat Imports, but Keeps Its Options Open
More than 200,000 tonnes booked from India as Black Sea disruptions tighten global supplies
Millers can also blend wheat from different origins to achieve the specifications required for particular products.
That means the return of Indian wheat is likely to add another major source to Bangladesh’s import basket rather than eliminate the country’s dependence on multiple origins.
Black Sea disruption is changing the buying decision
The biggest immediate factor reshaping the market is the Black Sea.
Russia and Ukraine became increasingly important suppliers to Bangladesh after India’s 2022 export restrictions. But the continuing Russia-Ukraine war has disrupted shipping through the region, with attacks affecting ports, grain infrastructure and commercial shipping.
The disruption has pushed Asian buyers to consider alternative suppliers, including Australia and Argentina.
For Bangladesh, the consequences are already visible in procurement decisions.
Indian wheat can move into Bangladesh by rail, avoiding some of the exposure associated with long-distance sea freight. Recent trade data show a sharp increase in India-to-Bangladesh rail movements since August, particularly through the Darshana and Rohanpur corridors.
This logistical advantage becomes more significant when Black Sea shipping is disrupted.
Price remains the decisive factor
The revival of Indian wheat trade is also closely linked to price.
Recent Indian wheat shipments to Bangladesh have been booked at roughly $305-$326 per tonne delivered, according to market sources.
But importers compare the full landed cost rather than the headline commodity price.
That calculation includes the wheat price, freight, insurance, port charges, delivery time and the risk of disruption.
The result is a market in which the cheapest supplier can change from one shipment to the next.
As a result, Bangladeshi importers have little incentive to abandon alternative suppliers simply because Indian wheat is available again.
Argentina emerges as a major supplier
The diversification of Bangladesh’s wheat market is particularly evident in the rise of Argentina.
Bangladesh imported a record 7.434 million tonnes of wheat in fiscal 2025-26, according to data cited from the National Board of Revenue. Argentina accounted for about 30% of the total, becoming Bangladesh’s largest source for the first time.
That shift would have been difficult to imagine before the 2022 Indian export restrictions.
It illustrates how quickly international commodity flows can change when a major exporter changes its policy.
The reopening of India therefore does not erase the new supply relationships Bangladesh has developed.
Government procurement is also diversified
Bangladesh’s public procurement strategy points in the same direction.
The government has continued to use international procurement channels rather than relying exclusively on India or any other single country.
That approach gives the government access to competing suppliers when prices, availability or shipping conditions change.
For a country importing more than seven million tonnes of wheat a year, procurement flexibility can have a direct bearing on food prices and supply stability.
Bangladesh’s vulnerability remains high
Despite the diversification, Bangladesh remains highly exposed to international wheat markets.
Domestic production supplies less than 10% of national demand, meaning any sustained disruption in international supply can quickly become a domestic food-price issue.
The latest USDA assessment puts Bangladesh’s 2025-26 wheat imports at about 7.4 million tonnes, while forecasting lower imports in 2026-27 as higher carryover stocks reduce the immediate need for additional purchases.
But lower projected imports do not eliminate the country’s structural dependence on foreign wheat.
Instead, they make procurement decisions more price-sensitive.
The new calculation
For Bangladeshi importers, the question is no longer simply whether India has returned to the market.
The question is whether Indian wheat remains competitive against supplies from Argentina, Russia, Ukraine, Canada, the United States and Australia after taking into account quality, freight and delivery risks.
India has a major advantage: proximity.
Argentina and other distant suppliers have a different advantage: diversification of supply and access to specific grades of wheat.
Russia and Ukraine remain important because of their scale and competitive pricing, but the Black Sea remains exposed to geopolitical and shipping risks.
The result is a new structure for Bangladesh’s wheat trade.
India is back, but the market it has returned to is no longer the market it left in 2022.
India may regain market share. But Bangladesh is unlikely to put all its wheat in one basket.
The four-year disruption has forced Bangladeshi importers to establish alternative supply chains, and the continuing volatility in the Black Sea has reinforced the value of keeping those options open.
For a country that imports the overwhelming majority of its wheat, supplier diversification is increasingly becoming a core part of food-supply security—not merely a commercial preference.
