Bangladesh's food grain stock hits record 2.4 million tonnes, exceeds storage capacity

Bangladesh's government food grain stock has reached a record 2.397 million tonnes, surpassing the country's official storage capacity of 2.3 million tonnes for the first time, reflecting stronger domestic procurement and robust imports over the past two years.

Data from the Ministry of Food show government warehouses currently hold 2.089 million tonnes of rice and 308,000 tonnes of wheat. Rice stocks have also climbed to an all-time high.

Officials said the unprecedented reserve has strengthened the government's ability to respond to natural disasters, run social safety net programmes and intervene in the market to contain rice prices.

According to the Directorate General of Food (DGoF), the previous highest stock stood at 2.249 million tonnes in August 2025. The earlier record was 2.185 million tonnes in 2022.

The increase has been driven by improved domestic procurement. After years of missing targets, the government exceeded its rice procurement goals in both the last Aman and Boro seasons.

The ongoing Boro procurement campaign, which began in May, has already collected 1.296 million tonnes of rice against a target of 1.625 million tonnes by August. During the last Aman season, procurement reached 1.03 million tonnes, exceeding the one-million-tonne target.

Government imports have also remained high. Bangladesh imported 1.284 million tonnes of rice and wheat in the last fiscal year, including 533,000 tonnes of rice and 751,000 tonnes of wheat.

"Government food stocks are setting new records almost every day," Md Moniruzzaman, director (Procurement) at the DGoF, told Daily Waadaa.

He attributed the increase to better procurement prices offered to farmers and millers, saying the larger reserve has reduced dependence on imports while helping stabilise the rice market.

The stockpile now exceeds the country's storage capacity by nearly 100,000 tonnes. Bangladesh has around 600 Local Supply Depots, 12 Central Storage Depots and nine mini silos, with a combined capacity of 2.3 million tonnes.

Food policy experts said the milestone also exposed a long-standing infrastructure gap.

Agricultural economist Prof Dr Jahangir Alam Khan said Bangladesh should have storage capacity for 4 million to 5 million tonnes, equivalent to about 10% of annual food grain production.

"Over the past 55 years, storage capacity has increased only modestly, while food production, population and demand have risen sharply," he said.

He added that maintaining larger public stocks reduces the risk of supply shortages and helps prevent sharp price increases during lean periods.

Despite the record stock, Moniruzzaman said the situation remains manageable.

"We are making maximum use of our warehouses. The Food-Friendly Programme will begin this month, which will consume around 150,000 to 200,000 tonnes of food grains," he said, adding that the government is expanding storage capacity through several ongoing projects.

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