New Delhi: Egypt has approved India as one of its wheat suppliers, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles Piyush Goyal said on Friday.
"Indian farmers are feeding the world," the minister tweeted.
"Egypt approves India as a wheat supplier. Modi Govt. steps in as world looks for reliable alternate sources for steady food supply," he posted. "Our farmers have ensured our granaries overflow & we are ready to serve the world."
This comes at a time the global supply of wheat is expeiencing constraints due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Both the warring nations are major global producers and exporters of wheat.
Egypt, meanwhile, is a major wheat importer.
India said on Wednesday that its approach to the Ukraine crisis remains to promote dialogue to end the conflict; mitigate economic distress for itself and for the world; and to work with its partners to these ends.
Earlier this month, while replying to a discussion on the situation in Ukraine in Parliament, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had said India has been approached by many nations for the supply of wheat and sugar during the ongoing crisis.
"India has been approached for the supply of wheat and sugar by many countries and we are responding positively. The House will be glad to know that whether it is Basmati rice, non Basmati rice, sugar, wheat, our exports in the last quarter have gone up very substantially," the minister said, as reported by news agency PTI.
He said: "We will step forward where global demands for food, grains and other materials are concerned and we will do it in a manner that is helpful to the global economy; which will not take undue advantage of countries in distress."