Birgunj Customs, the country’s major customs point facilitating a significant portion of the nation's foreign trade, has reported a substantial increase in paddy imports during the first five months of the current fiscal year, the state-run national news agency RSS reported.
According to RSS, data from the Customs Office show that paddy imports surged by 60.28% compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year, reaching a total value of Rs 3.93 billion. This increase also contributed to a 45.23% rise in revenue collection from paddy imports.
In contrast, during the first five months of the last fiscal year, paddy imports were valued at Rs 2.4 billion. Additionally, rice imports during the same period amounted to Rs 928 million.
Analysts say this significant rise in paddy imports reflects the growing demand for rice in Nepal, despite the country's efforts to boost domestic production.
In the fiscal year 2023/24, Nepal produced 5.724 million metric tons of paddy, the highest quantity ever recorded. This represents a 4.3% increase from the previous year, when 5.486 million metric tons were produced.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture’s milling rates as part of its global rice production and supply reports, the paddy production of 5.724 million metric tons typically yields about 3.812 million metric tons of milled rice, considering a milling recovery rate of approximately 66.6%.
Despite record production, paddy and rice remained Nepal's most imported agricultural products in FY 2023/24. The country imported 477,350 metric tons of paddy and rice, valued at Rs 21.34 billion.
Nepal's annual demand for milled rice is approximately 4 million metric tons. To meet this demand, Nepal imports rice from India, China, Vietnam, the United States, and Thailand.
