India’s agri and food products exports worth $11.8 billion to West Asia are at risk as the conflict in the region is disrupting shipping routes, raising insurance costs and creating uncertainty in logistics, think tank GTRI has warned.

The region, engulfed in war at present, had accounted for 21.8 per cent of India’s total agri export in FY25, with cereals, fruits, vegetables, dairy products and spices accounting for a bulk of the basket.

Key shipments include rice, bananas, onions and vegetables, pulses, nuts, coffee, tea and a wide range of spices.

“Rice faces the largest potential impact. India exported $4.43 billion of rice to West Asia, accounting for 36.7 per cent of its global rice exports, making Gulf markets crucial for producers in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana,” GTRI founder Ajay Srivastava said.

The Gulf region’s geographic proximity and presence of a large expatriate Indian population have historically made it a natural market for India’s food exports.

However, the conflict in the region is disrupting shipping routes, raising insurance costs and creating uncertainty in logistics, GTRI observed.

India exported $7.48 billion of cereals, fruits, vegetables and spices to West Asia in 2025, with the region accounting for 29.2 per cent of India’s global exports in this category.

Orthodox tea (leaf tea), which fetches a higher price than the CTC variety and is a major produce of Assam and Bengal, has a large market in Iran, Iraq and the UAE. Even though peak export season for the crop is still a few months away, exporters and growers are worried about the month ahead. Weaker exports can push up supplies in the domestic market, driving prices down, they feared. India exported $410.1 million worth of tea to West Asia, GTRI noted.