trade-export

Indian Rice: Basmati and Non-Basmati Specifications and Compliance

India is the world’s largest rice exporter. What a miller, repacker or importer should settle before contracting — variety against processing form, the residue parameter that decides European clearance, current export policy, and why the container-versus-bulk decision is made differently for rice than for anything else.

September 11, 2026

12 min read

RNG Trade Intelligence

Market Research Desk · Rajkot

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Rice

Export policy: where things stand

All principal rice categories are currently exportable. The blanket ban on non-basmati white rice, imposed in July 2023, was withdrawn on 28 September 2024 and replaced with a minimum export price, which was itself removed in October 2024. Export duty on parboiled rice, husked brown rice and paddy was reduced to nil with effect from 22 October 2024. The prohibition on broken rice, in place since September 2022, was amended from prohibited to free in March 2025.

One live condition applies specifically to Europe. DGFT Notification No. 07/2026-27, dated 10 April 2026, amended the export policy conditions for rice under HS heading 1006 for both basmati and non-basmati. A Certificate of Inspection issued by the Export Inspection Council or an Export Inspection Agency remains mandatory for exports to EU member states and to the United Kingdom, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. A temporary relaxation of the certificate requirement was granted for certain other European destinations, applicable for six months from the notification, which by its terms runs until 1 October 2026.

Two things follow. First, verify the notification text and the current position with your customs broker before you contract a European shipment — the relaxation is time-bounded and the reinstated position is the default. Second, treat Indian food grain export policy as current rather than permanent: it has moved in both directions repeatedly since 2022. Build a policy-change clause into any term contract that extends beyond the season.

Basmati: variety and processing are two separate decisions

Most basmati enquiries name a variety and stop, which leaves the processing form — the thing that actually determines how the rice behaves in the pot — unspecified.

Varieties

Processing forms

Ageing is the third variable and it is rarely written into contracts. Basmati improves with controlled ageing — aroma develops and cooking behaviour firms. If you are paying for aged rice, specify the crop year and the ageing period in the contract, because “aged” without a number means nothing enforceable.

Non-basmati

For West African programmes the practical reality is that parboiled IR64 in bulk from the east coast is usually the only structure that works on cost. Container programmes rarely survive the freight arithmetic at the volumes those buyers need.

Reference specifications

Tricyclazole: the parameter that decides European clearance

This is the single most important compliance section for any basmati buyer in Europe, and the one where Indian consignments most often fail.

Tricyclazole is a fungicide used against rice blast. It is widely used in Indian paddy cultivation and the European Union applies a very low maximum residue level, effectively at the default limit of quantification. The practical consequence is stark: a residue level that would pass comfortably in Gulf or African markets will fail an EU consignment outright. This is not a marginal technical risk — it is the leading cause of Indian basmati rejections at EU borders.

If you are importing into the EU or UK, require a tricyclazole result on the specific lot from an accredited laboratory, with the analytical method and limit of quantification stated, before the container is booked. Do not accept a generic supplier declaration and do not accept a result from a different lot of the same variety. Ask also for the broader residue panel run against EU limits, since tricyclazole is the headline risk but not the only one.

Alongside residues, EU-bound and UK-bound consignments require the EIC or EIA Certificate of Inspection described above. Confirm which party arranges it and at whose cost before contracting.

Other quality and safety parameters

• Aflatoxin, where the destination sets a limit for rice
• Heavy metals, with arsenic relevant in some markets for rice specifically
• Salmonella and general microbiology where the buyer’s process requires it
• GMO-free declaration where the destination requires it
• Fumigation, with the method confirmed as acceptable to the destination

Documentation

• APEDA registration-cum-membership certificate, and basmati registration where applicable
• Certificate of Inspection from EIC or EIA for EU, UK and specified European destinations
• Certificate of analysis covering grain length, broken, moisture, purity, chalky and damaged grain, with test date
• Pesticide residue report against destination limits, with tricyclazole stated separately for European cargo
• Phytosanitary certificate and fumigation certificate
• Weight and quality certificate from an independent surveyor at load port for bulk cargo
• Certificate of origin, and preferential origin documentation where a trade agreement applies
• Halal certificate where the destination market requires it
• Commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading, declaring the correct sub-heading: 1006.30.20 basmati, 1006.30.10 parboiled, 1006.30.90 non-basmati white, 1006.40.00 broken

Packing, loading and shipment mode

Rice is dense, which puts it at the opposite end of the spectrum from psyllium or chilli. Containers hit the weight limit long before they fill, so the commercial question is not how much fits but whether containers make sense at all at your volume.

For any West or Central African programme above a few thousand tonnes, run the bulk-vessel arithmetic from the east coast before assuming containers. The freight differential typically decides whether a contract is viable at all, and it is the calculation most first-time buyers skip.

Ports and transit

Basmati moves largely through Mundra, Kandla and Nhava Sheva, closest to the Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh growing belt. Non-basmati parboiled for Africa moves predominantly through Kakinada and Visakhapatnam on the east coast, which sit closest to the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana milling cluster and handle bulk parcels.

Season and availability

The main kharif crop is harvested from October into December, with basmati arrivals concentrating from October through January. This is the window in which crop year, aroma and residue profile are known, and it is the right period to contract an annual programme. A summer crop supplements supply in some regions. Aged basmati is drawn from earlier crop years and priced accordingly.

How to qualify an Indian rice supplier

1. Verify the Importer Exporter Code issued by DGFT and the APEDA registration-cum-membership certificate.
2. Establish whether the counterparty mills or only trades, and where the mill is. For basmati, ask whether the mill is in the recognised growing belt.
3. For European cargo, ask for a tricyclazole result from a recent shipment with the limit of quantification stated, and confirm who arranges the EIC or EIA certificate.
4. Confirm the exporter will accept independent surveyor determination of quality and weight at load port for bulk cargo, and name the surveyor.
5. Request a pre-shipment sample and test grain length, broken percentage, moisture and, for basmati, cooked elongation independently.
6. Establish crop year and, for aged basmati, the ageing period in writing.
7. Agree the policy-change clause covering unshipped balances if export policy is revised mid-contract.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between steam, sella and golden sella?

Processing, not variety. Raw is untreated with the most delicate aroma and highest breakage. Steam is lightly steamed for better cooking tolerance and pale colour. Sella is fully parboiled, firm with very low breakage. Golden sella has a longer soak and steam, giving the golden grain preferred for biryani across the Middle East.

Why does tricyclazole matter?

It is a rice blast fungicide, and the EU maximum residue level sits at the default limit of quantification. A residue acceptable in Gulf or African markets will fail an EU consignment. Require a lot-specific result before shipment.

Can India export non-basmati and broken rice now?

Yes. Non-basmati white was freed in September 2024 with the MEP removed in October 2024, export duties on parboiled and brown rice went to nil in October 2024, and broken rice moved from prohibited to free in March 2025. Confirm the live position before contracting.

How much loads into a container?

Around 25 to 27 MT in a 20-foot. Rice is weight limited, so a 40-foot adds little. Large volumes move in bulk vessels.

Do you supply parboiled IR64 in bulk for West Africa?

Yes, quoted on a bulk-parcel basis ex east coast. Send tonnage, discharge port and specification for a landed cost comparison against a container structure.

What are the HS codes?

1006.30.20 basmati, 1006.30.10 parboiled, 1006.30.90 non-basmati white, 1006.40.00 broken. Confirm the eight-digit national code with your customs broker.

Request a specification-matched offer

Send variety, processing form, broken percentage, moisture ceiling and crop year, with volume, discharge port and incoterm. For European destinations, tell us your tricyclazole limit and we will confirm the residue and inspection certificate position before quoting. For African volume, tell us the tonnage and we will price bulk alongside containers.

https://rngagroexports.com/request-quote/