Rice is a staple food for much of Asia, Africa and Latin America, with caloric intake ranging from 50% to 70%. It holds deep cultural significance in many Asian countries.

India and China are the leading rice producers, accounting for over 50% of the world's rice output.

The rice trade even produced the world’s first futures contact — in 18th century Japan.

Rice has complex trade routes that are affected by weather, trade policies and other factors.

After the paddy is harvested, it is then subjected to cleaning, hulling, milling, polishing or whitening and grading. About 70%-80% of the paddy is milled into rice globally, the remaining is used for animal feed and seed purposes.

The major products are white rice, parboiled rice, and rice bran. White rice is produced by the above methods, whereas the cleaned rice is then soaked at 50-75°C for shorter durations, steamed to gelatinize the starch, and dried. Bran is the byproduct from both rice varieties. It is a nutrient-rich byproduct used as a nutritional supplement, in animal feed, and in food products like baked goods and cereals.

In Asia rice is most often consumed in the form of cooked rice. It is also processed into various products such as rice flour, rice noodles, rice cakes, and rice bran oil, which are widely used in culinary applications.

Milled rice (white rice)

India is the largest exporter of white rice in the world, followed by Thailand. Globally, Asian countries importing 69 million mt, followed by Middle East countries, African countries, the US and Canada.

White rice milling typically produces a significant amount of rice bran and broken rice that are commonly used in animal feed. Rice bran, rich in protein, fat, and fiber, is commonly used for livestock and poultry feed, also for making rice bran oil. Broken rice, which consists of fragments from milling, serves as a source of carbohydrates and energy. Both of them are considered cost-effective feed options for livestock.

Parboiled rice

Parboiling is a hydrothermal process applied to paddy before milling, involving soaking, steaming, and drying. Its main goal is to enhance rice quality and increase milling yield. Parboiled rice offers several benefits over unparboiled rice, such as stronger kernels, higher recovery during milling, preservation of nutrients, and longer shelf life due to better resistance to insects and mold.

India is the top producer and exporter of parboiled rice worldwide. Africa is a major importer for India, especially Benin. Benin imported 2.11 million mt in MY 2024-25, constituting 22% of the total imports to Africa. Long-grain parboiled rice is commonly imported by African countries and is featured in various popular African dishes, including Jollof rice and fried rice.