THE WORLD MAP OF RICE

One of the most everyday foods in the world is also the lead character in a huge trading network. Millions of tonnes of rice cross borders every year, connecting farms, ports, sea routes and markets thousands of kilometres apart.

Rice is part of the daily diet of billions of people. We find it in almost any supermarket and, precisely because of that familiarity, it is easy to forget everything that may have happened before it reaches us.

Where was it grown? How many borders has it crossed? Which countries dominate its exports? And which ones need to import huge volumes to cover their consumption?

Following the journey of rice draws a surprising map of world trade.

In 2025, international rice trade reached record levels, with around 60 million tonnes crossing borders.

A giant called India.

The first figure is particularly striking because of its scale. India has firmly established itself as the leading force in global rice exports. USDA estimates for the 2025/26 season put its exports at around 25 million tonnes.

Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan and Cambodia also rank among the world’s major rice exporters, although at a considerable distance behind India.

India’s sheer scale helps illustrate just how much the trade of an apparently simple staple food can be shaped by decisions made in a single market.

A harvest, a change in export restrictions or a shift in demand can ultimately have consequences thousands of kilometres away.

Approximately 4 out of every 10 tonnes of rice exported worldwide originate in India.

The other side of the map

But every export needs a destination. And when we look at imports, the map changes completely.

Major markets across Asia, Africa and the Middle East rely on international trade to meet part of their demand. Countries with very large populations, production constraints or specific consumption habits may need to import millions of tonnes from other regions.

This creates trade routes linking some of the main production hubs in South and Southeast Asia with markets thousands of kilometres away.

A single product may leave a field, pass through a processing plant, travel by road to a port, remain in storage, be loaded into a container, cross an ocean and then travel hundreds of kilometres more before reaching its destination.

And all of that happens before anyone even opens the package.

Exporting and importing at the same time

There is another particular feature that makes this map even more interesting: the categories of “exporting country” and “importing country” are not always opposites.

Vietnam is one of the world’s largest rice exporters and, at the same time, imports rice from neighbouring countries such as Cambodia.

Why? Because international trade is not simply about moving goods from places with surpluses to places facing shortages.

Varieties, quality, prices, geographical proximity, industrial capacity, processing needs, trade agreements and market opportunities all play a role.

A product may enter a country to be processed, blended, transformed or subsequently traded on to other destinations.

The production map, the import map and the export map are not the same map.

A grain of rice never travels alone

The approximately 60 million tonnes traded internationally each year need much more than ships to keep moving.

Before reaching a port, there are producers, processing plants, warehouses and inland transport. Then come terminals, containers, shipping lines, documentation, inspections and customs. And once the goods reach their destination, another chain of storage, distribution and transport begins.

Each of these points involves decisions: Which route should be used? When should the shipment depart? How should the goods be protected? How much stock should be kept? What happens if a port becomes congested? What happens when regulations change or a route is disrupted?

Multiplied across millions of tonnes, these decisions form a global infrastructure that usually remains out of sight.

The journey of a grain of rice

Invisible stories of global transport.

A series by Transped exploring the routes, technologies, infrastructure and decisions that keep goods moving.