In India, maize is principally grown in two seasons, rainy (kharif) and winter (rabi). Kharif maize represents around 83% of maize area in India, while rabi maize correspond to 17% maize area. Over 70% of kharif maize area is grown under the rainfed condition with a prevalence of many biotic and abiotic stresses. The stress prone ecology contributes towards lower productivity of kharif maize (2706 kg/ha) as compared to rabi maize (4436 kg/ha), which is predominantly grown under assured ecosystem. In recent past spring maize area is also growing quite fast in north western parts of the country, in the states of Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh.

India produced an estimated 34.6 million tonnes of maize in 2023-24. India’s maize production is expected to quadruple to close the supply-demand gap. India’s annual maize consumption is around 36-37 million tonnes. The largest consumer is the feed industry, which uses about 60% of the maize. The starch industry uses about 14%, and the food processing industry uses about 7%. The remaining 5 million tonnes is consumed as food. India’s major export destinations for maize are Vietnam, Nepal, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Thailand. The maize market in India is growing, with the maize seed market expected to reach $475.2 million by 2030 and the maize market valued at $1.29 billion in 2024.

Average maize export prices surged by 5 percent month-on-month in September, primarily due to logistical complications along the Mississippi River and firm local demand in Brazil. The market size is estimated to reach USD 143.62 billion in 2024 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.01% to reach USD 166.57 billion by 2029. North America is expected to be the largest market for maize, followed by Asia-Pacific, due to high production and consumption as animal feed. The United States is the largest producer of maize, accounting for 30.99% of global production, and exported over 61.5 million metric tons of corn.