Food stock satisfactory, steps underway to boost reserves: State Minister Bari
The state minister said the government has undertaken a set of coordinated measures to further strengthen food reserves.
State Minister for Food Md Abdul Bari today (20 April) told parliament that the country's food grain stock remains satisfactory in the government godowns, with a total of 17.71 lakh tonnes as of 13 April 2026.
Of the total stock, 14.64 lakh tonnes are rice and 3.07 lakh tonnes are wheat, he said in reply to a starred question from treasury bench member Abul Kalam Azad Siddiqui (Tangail-7) in the house.
The state minister said the government has undertaken a set of coordinated measures to further strengthen food reserves, including the import of rice and wheat through both government-to-government (G2G) arrangements and international open tenders.
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Alongside imports, domestic procurement drives are being continued, with rice collected from contracted mills and paddy and wheat procured directly from genuine farmers holding agricultural assistance cards at government-fixed prices during the Boro and Aman seasons.
Detailing the import situation, Abdul Bari said, in the current fiscal year 2025-26, contracts have been signed for 6 lakh tonnes of rice, of which 3.57 lakh tonnes have already been received, while the remaining 2.43 lakh tonnes are in the pipeline.
For wheat, contracts totalling 7.1 lakh tonnes have been concluded, including a major G2G deal with the United States. So far, 7.03 lakh tonnes have arrived and the remaining around 60,000 tonnes is scheduled to reach Chattogram port by 24 April 2026.
