{"id":63685,"date":"2025-09-16T11:01:23","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T05:31:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=63685"},"modified":"2025-09-16T11:01:23","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T05:31:23","slug":"why-india-avoids-us-corn-imports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/why-india-avoids-us-corn-imports\/","title":{"rendered":"Why India Avoids US Corn Imports"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>India US Corn Trade Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick criticised India\u2019s trade practices, singling out its refusal to import American corn.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He argued that India maintains high tariffs while enjoying access to the US market, making the trade relationship \u201cone way.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lutnick said India, <\/span><b>despite its 1.4 billion population, does not buy even minimal US corn<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, calling it unfair and contrary to the US vision of \u201cfair and reciprocal trade.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Why India Limits US Corn Imports<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2024\u201325, India imported 0.97 million tonnes of corn, mainly from Myanmar (0.53 mt) and Ukraine (0.39 mt), while imports from the US were negligible at just 1,100 tonnes.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Two key factors explain this:\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India caps duty at 15% for up to 0.5 mt of imports, but any quantity beyond that faces a steep 50% tariff; and\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">it <\/span><b>bans genetically modified (GMO) corn<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which dominates US production.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Also, India is the fifth-largest corn producer and largely self-sufficient, with production dominated by small farmers needing protection from corporate imports.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These restrictions frustrate the US, the world\u2019s largest corn producer and exporter.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">US produced 377.63 mt and exported 71.70 mt in 2024\u201325 for uses ranging from livestock feed to ethanol production.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>US Corn Export Push Amid China\u2019s Retreat<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For 2025\u201326, US corn production and exports are projected at record highs of 427.1 mt and 75 mt, with most output from Midwestern states like Iowa, Illinois, and Nebraska.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The urgency to find new markets is driven by collapsing Chinese demand.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2022, China was the top buyer, purchasing $5.21 billion worth of US corn out of $18.57 billion in total exports.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By 2024, exports dropped to $13.70 billion, with China slashing imports to $331 million, far behind Mexico ($5.51 billion), Japan ($2.73 billion), and Colombia ($1.52 billion).\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Between January\u2013July 2025, amid escalating trade tensions, China imported only $2.4 million worth of US corn.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This steep decline explains the Trump administration\u2019s aggressive push, reflected in Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick\u2019s criticism of India\u2019s trade restrictions.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>India\u2019s Rising Corn Demand and US Trade Hurdles<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s growing population, higher per capita GDP, and rising consumption of milk, eggs, fish, and meat are expected to sharply increase corn demand.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The US Department of Agriculture projects India\u2019s corn consumption to rise from 34.7 mt in 2022\u201323 to 98 mt in 2040 and 200.2 mt in 2050 under rapid income growth, requiring imports of 46 mt and 134 mt, respectively.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even with moderate growth, consumption could reach 93 mt by 2050, with 26 mt of imports.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The US, the world\u2019s cheapest corn producer, is keen to tap this market, <\/span><b>but 94% of its<\/b> <b>corn area is under genetically modified (GM) varieties<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which India neither imports nor allows farmers to plant.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While a NITI Aayog proposal once suggested importing GM maize solely for ethanol production, it was withdrawn.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Current Outlook<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite US pressure, India remains firm on protecting its farmers and food policies by rejecting GM corn and maintaining tariffs.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With assembly elections in <\/span><b>Bihar, India\u2019s third-largest maize producer<\/b> (after Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh)<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, the government is even less likely to relax tariffs or permit GM corn imports.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Price differences add another layer: US corn costs under \u20b915\/kg versus India\u2019s wholesale price of \u20b922\u201323\/kg and MSP of \u20b924\/kg for 2025\u201326.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hence, given domestic sensitivities, India is unlikely to concede, though the US continues to lobby aggressively.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\n<b>Source:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-economics\/india-import-corn-us-10251588\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IE<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> | <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.indiatoday.in\/india\/story\/us-trade-secretary-howard-lutnick-warns-india-tariffs-corn-imports-2787235-2025-09-14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IT<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> | <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.firstpost.com\/explainers\/howard-lutnick-american-corn-india-trade-explained-13933816.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">FP<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>India resists US corn imports due to tariffs and GMO bans, despite rising demand. Trade tensions grow as America seeks new markets after losing China.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":63698,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[2715,60,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-63685","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-india-us-corn-trade","9":"tag-mains-articles","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63685"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63685\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}