Legume-Based Feed Drives India's 14% Export Surge to Norway

India's agricultural residue and animal feed sector is experiencing remarkable momentum in the Nordic market. Exports to Norway reached $153.9 million in 2025, up from $135.1 million the prior year—a 13.9% increase—according to Statistics Norway (SSB Table 08801). The growth reflects India's expanding role as a primary global supplier of specialized feed ingredients, with legume bran and agricultural by-products dominating the outflow. (See also: India-Norway trade)

Within this sector, India's prepared animal feed exports to Norway include legume residues, with Norway listed as a major destination alongside Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Nepal. The composition of India's export basket shows sophisticated market segmentation: legume bran for fish feed accounts for over 99% of the total trade flow, while pet food formulations and oilcake residues from extraction processes fill smaller but growing niches. (See also: agriculture value chain)

Breaking Down the Feed Supply Chain

Animal feed production in India spans multiple input streams, each with distinct regional origins and processing characteristics. India, as the largest producer of oilseeds globally, manufactures more than 25 million metric tons of oilseed cakes annually. Among dominant oilcake products, soybean cake comprises 54% of total production, followed by rapeseed cake and cottonseed cake at 10% each.

The Norway trade reflects India's ability to convert agricultural processing residues into high-value animal nutrition inputs. Oilcake or solid residue refers to solid material left behind after extracting oil from various oilseeds or nuts—a resource stream that Nordic aquaculture and livestock producers increasingly seek from Indian suppliers. (See also: agriculture value chain)

In global competition, India holds ground against established exporters. According to trade data, India ranks fourth among global suppliers to Norway's animal feed import market, competing against the United Kingdom ($273.9 million), Denmark ($246.3 million), and Brazil ($204.6 million). In rapeseed oilcake exports globally, India commands $479 million in 2024, ranking second only to Canada—a position that underscores India's strategic importance in Nordic sourcing strategies.

TEPA Opens New Tariff Windows for Indian Suppliers

The India-European Free Trade Association Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA), which entered force in October 2025, is reshaping the competitive economics of this trade corridor. Norway has eliminated its 13.16 per cent import duty on feed, including fish and shrimp feed, reducing the tariff to zero—a concession that directly benefits legume-based feed inputs. India expects exports to Norway's fish feed segment alone to reach $3.50 million in coming years, signaling confidence in duty-free penetration.

Under TEPA, EFTA has offered 92.2% of tariff lines encompassing 99.6% of India's exports, creating broad-based access to Norwegian importers. For animal feed ingredients specifically, the removal of import duties erases a major pricing friction point that previously benefited European competitors. Producers based in Indore, Rajkot, and Navi Mumbai can now compete on quality and logistics efficiency alone.

Industrial Clusters Driving Growth Across Three States

India's animal feed exports are anchored in concentrated production regions with deep supply chains and infrastructure. Indore, Madhya Pradesh serves as the soybean processing hub, extracting oil and residues for export-grade animal meal production. Rajkot, Gujarat specializes in guar-based nutritional products and legume processing. Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra functions as the aggregation and export gateway, with port access to containerized shipments destined for Oslo and other Nordic ports.

These clusters benefit from economies of scale: Organized animal feed manufacturers produce around 30 million tonnes of commercial feed, with cattle feed reaching 8 million tonnes from organized producers. Large integrators like Godrej Agrovet, the largest compound feed manufacturer in India, produce 1 million tonnes annually. Alongside these, AWL Agri Business (formerly Adani Wilmar) operates 24 plants across 11 states and exports to more than 50 countries, with global reach enabling bilateral supply agreements with Nordic importers.

India's animal feed sector, as the fourth-largest producer globally, accounted for a $11.66 billion market in 2022, providing the production scale necessary to serve both domestic and export demand simultaneously.

Jobs, Communities, and Livelihoods Across India's Feed Sector

The animal feed trade supports employment across multiple tiers of the Indian economy. According to production data, India's food products sector (ISIC Division 10) employs 2.17 million workers as of 2024. Using sector multipliers, this trade flow supports direct and indirect employment across the entire value chain.

Employment estimate methodology: Using the sector multiplier of 10 direct jobs and 18 indirect jobs per 100,000 dollars of exports, India's $153.9 million Norway trade flow generates an estimated 2,308 direct jobs and 4,155 indirect jobs in agriculture, processing, and logistics. These figures reflect workers in crushing mills, animal feed formulation plants, packaging facilities, and transportation networks linking production clusters to ports.

Women represent approximately 30% of the agricultural workforce in feed production roles, particularly in seed sorting, quality control, and packaging operations. MSMEs account for 80% of the sector's production base, meaning small and medium enterprises drive most of the outbound supply. Family-run oil extraction units in Indore and contract milling operations in Rajkot depend directly on exports to sustain year-round operations and maintain employment through seasonal fluctuations.

In Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, rural processing workers and smallholder farmers selling soy and legume crops to crushers see direct income uplift from rising export values. Cooperative procurement systems in these states bundle farmer output into exportable volumes, creating predictable income streams that support school attendance and healthcare investments in farming families.

Market Outlook and Competitive Positioning

India's 8.3% share of Norway's total animal feed import market (valued at $1.85 billion globally) reflects mid-tier positioning rather than dominance. However, the 13.9% year-on-year growth rate significantly outpaces overall market expansion, indicating deliberate market share capture.

Three factors support continued expansion: First, TEPA's zero-duty access for fish and shrimp feed eliminates Norway's previous 13.16% tariff barrier, immediately improving Indian cost competitiveness. Second, Europe—particularly Germany and France—is showing increased demand for soybean meal, a trend that extends to Nordic markets as European livestock integrators diversify suppliers. Third, India's domestic animal feed market is valued at INR 1,110 billion (2024) and projected to reach INR 2,025.1 billion by 2033 at 6.9% CAGR, ensuring sustained production scale that allows exporters to negotiate favorable ship rates and manage inventory cycles.

India's position as a partner to Norwegian aquaculture and livestock producers appears durable. Preference for non-genetically modified feed inputs and supply chain transparency standards favor Indian suppliers with certifications. The TEPA framework provides institutional certainty for multi-year purchasing agreements, encouraging Norwegian buyers to integrate Indian ingredient sourcing into standardized feed formulations.

Data source: Statistics Norway (SSB) Table 08801, 2025. Production employment data: India ISIC Division 10 (Food Products), FY2024. Norway employment: 727 persons, 2022 (Statistics Norway). Tariff data: India-EFTA TEPA Schedule, October 2025.