Bangladesh to pay up to $70 per ton premium for US wheat

Bangladesh continues to purchase wheat from the United States under a government-to-government arrangement despite significantly higher costs compared with alternative suppliers. According to the country’s Food Ministry, US wheat currently costs $65–70/ton more than Russian wheat. One of the main reasons for the difference is logistics: shipments from the US take around 55 days to reach Bangladesh, compared with about 15 days from Russia.

On July 1, the Bangladeshi government approved the import of 220 thsd tons of US wheat under a government-to-government deal at $332/ton. The total cost of the purchase will be around Tk 8.7 bln. By comparison, the government simultaneously approved the purchase of 50 thsd tons through an international open tender at $297.92/ton, more than $34/ton cheaper.

Bangladesh purchased 800 thsd tons of wheat from the US in the previous fiscal year and plans to import the same volume in the current fiscal year. Supplies are carried out under a memorandum with US Wheat Associates, with Singapore-based Agrocorp International acting as an intermediary seller. Previous US wheat shipments were priced at $302–312.25/ton, while wheat purchased through an open tender cost around $275/ton.

Experts in Bangladesh have criticized the terms of the purchases and urged the government to make greater use of competitive international tenders. Under this mechanism, contracts are awarded to suppliers offering the lowest price, with wheat traditionally sourced from the Black Sea region. The government, however, says the higher cost of US wheat reflects more expensive freight, higher grain quality and expectations of reliable delivery.

Bangladesh remains heavily dependent on wheat imports, as domestic production covers only around 13% of national demand. In the 2024/25 fiscal year, the public and private sectors imported a combined 6.235 mln tons of wheat. Following India’s wheat export ban in 2022, Bangladesh was forced to diversify its suppliers, with Argentina emerging as one of the major sources of cheaper wheat in 2025/26.

Tags: Israel, Bangladesh, Iran, Russia, US, wheat