Food Minister Afroza Khanam on Thursday said Bangladesh currently has no food grain shortage, with government warehouses holding substantially more than the stipulated security stock.
“Therefore, there is no scope for shortage of food, including rice and wheat/flour, in the country,” she said in a written reply to a question from opposition Jamaat-e-Islami MP Md Mashiur Rahman Khan in Parliament.
The food minister said government warehouses held 2,437,807 metric tonnes of food grain as of August 30.
At a meeting of the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) on August 6, the food security stock was set at 1.4 million metric tonnes during normal periods and 1.5 million tonnes during crises.
Citing the Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) Food Outlook, Afroza said Bangladesh’s rice demand or consumption stood at 42.3 million metric tonnes in fiscal 2025-26, against total supply of 43.652 million tonnes.
Of the total rice supply, 42.467 million tonnes came from domestic production and 1.285 million tonnes from imports.
FAO also reported that in the same fiscal, demand for wheat stood at 8.2 million tonnes against total supply of 8.367 million tonnes. Domestic production accounted for 1.029 million tonnes, while 7.338 million tonnes were imported.
According to the FAO’s Food Outlook, Bangladesh's demand for rice in the coming 2026-27 fiscal is projected at 42.6 million tonnes, while for wheat it is 8.3 million tonnes, she said.
The minister said the government and private sector import rice and wheat in line with demand to ensure normal supply and keep market prices stable.
Meanwhile, Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury told Parliament that remittance inflows increased significantly in fiscal 2025-26.
Replying to a written question from reserved women’s seat MP Nilofer Chowdhury Moni, he said Bangladesh received $35,589.39 million ($35.6 billion) in remittances in FY26, up $5,261 million ($5.3 billion) from $30,328.81 million ($30.3 billion) in FY25.
Saudi Arabia was the largest source, with remittances rising from $4,264.36 million to $5,848.87 million, followed by the UK, where inflows increased from $3,168.59 million to $5,071.99 million.
Remittances from the UAE rose from $4,168.17 million to $4,583.91 million, while Malaysia’s increased from $2,804.82 million to $3,403.65 million.
However, inflows from the United States fell sharply, from $4,733.13 million in FY25 to $3,033.15 million in FY26, a decline of about 35.9 percent.
Canada also recorded a nearly 50 percent fall, with remittances declining from $220.98 million to $110.55 million.
(1000 million = 1 billion)