Growing demand for broken rice from India, China tops the list of 83 nations

New Delhi: During 2021-22, India exported 38.64 LMT of broken rice to 83 countries. Of this, a maximum of 15.76 LMT was procured by China.

There was a quantum leap in China’s demand as the export quantity jumped from a modest 2.73 LMT to a whopping 476.40-per cent up.

Sources said one reason for the sudden increase in demand is the higher demand for rice for making noodles and wine in China.

Broken rice is fragments of rice grains broken in the field during drying, or transport, or milling. Mechanical separators are used to separate them from the general rice.

Reports further said that non-basmati rice accounts for the major share in Indian rice exports. During 2021-22, the export of rice other than basmati was 172.62 LMT, which was 31.27 per cent higher than 131.49 LMT in 2020-21.

Of India’s total rice export in 2021-22, basmati rice accounted for 39.48 LMT, which was 14.73 per cent lower than 46.30 LMT exported in 2020-21, reports said.

Experts say, in a general sense, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with the broken rice other than the grains are fragmented.

There are other uses for broken rice as well. Industry analysts say it is used for the pet food industry. It is also used for feeding livestock and aquaculture.

Broken rice is often used to make starch, which is used as a laundry starch or in foods or in cosmetics or in textile manufacturing.