A new trade deal between the US and India could provide a boost to some agricultural trade.
As part of an initial agreement between the two countries, India agreed to eliminate or reduce tariffs on several US agricultural products, according to a joint statement released by the White House. This includes dried distillers grains (DDG) and red sorghum, which could spur a resumption of those trade flows as tariff barriers — 15pc for the former and 50pc for the latter — collapse.
India has not imported DDG from the US since 2022, prior to which the US shipped 2,100 metric tonnes (t) to the country annually, according to US Customs and Border Protection (USCBP) data.
US sorghum exports to India have been zero since 1976, but a reduction in the 50pc tariff rate could be a substantial opportunity for US sorghum farmers, as India is expected to consume 4.75mn t of sorghum during the November-October 2025-26 marketing year, the USDA estimates.
The agreement also highlighted soybean oil — currently subject to a 20pc import tariff — of which exports to India have been inconsistent. Data for January to November 2025 showed US exports of soybean oil at 204,000t, the most since 1980. Exports in the five years prior averaged 53,000t per year — reaching as high as 133,000t in 2022 and as low as 52t the following year.
Tree nuts, fresh and processed fruits, and wine and spirits were similarly named in the agreement, though flows from the US to India of those products have been relatively steady in recent years.
Though the preliminary agreement did not specify how much current tariff levels would change, any adjustments could spark an increase in US export volumes.
Organic soybean flows
Lower tariffs against Indian exports to the US — down from 25pc to 18pc — will support the organic soybean meal trade, but volumes will remain limited by existing counter-dumping duties.
The US launched an antidumping investigation against Indian soybean meal in 2021. Most Indian soybean crushers did not comply with a request for information from the US Department of Commerce, and were levied antidumping and countervailing duties of more than 266pc as a result. The few Indian exporters who did complete the required paperwork were assessed duties of only 11.83pc, and will be able to take advantage of the lowered tariffs.
US organic soybean meal feed demand will increase by 7pc from a year earlier during the September-October 2025-26 marketing year, Argus estimates. The US imported 543,000t of organic soybean meal during the 2024-25 marketing year, with India accounting for only 7.8pc of that volume. The US received no organic soybean meal from India during December or January, Argus data show.
