★ The WPPS CEO Conclave 2026 was held in Varanasi on July 9–10, 2026, bringing together more than 400 participants from across the country, including roller flour millers, processors, traders, ethanol industry experts, and key stakeholders from the agricultural sector. IGrain India was the Media Partner for the event and covered all major proceedings of the conclave.

★ The two-day conclave witnessed extensive discussions on ethanol policy, the wheat market, food security, government interventions, global grain markets, and the outlook for the upcoming season. The key takeaways are as follows:

★ India's ethanol manufacturing policy was widely appreciated as a positive step towards strengthening the country's energy security. Participants observed that the policy is reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels while helping save valuable foreign exchange. However, they also noted that the expansion of ethanol production has significantly altered the business dynamics of the sugar, wheat, maize, rice, edible oil, cotton, and animal feed industries.

★ The increased availability of Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS), a by-product of ethanol production, has reduced the demand for wheat bran in the livestock feed sector, leading to significant changes in feed industry consumption patterns.

★ Participants emphasized that the direction of the wheat market is currently driven largely by government policies. With the government holding ample stocks of wheat and other food grains, there appears to be little risk of any major supply shortage during the current marketing season.

★ It was suggested that since the government has accurate data on production, central pool stocks, and inventories held by the private sector, policy decisions related to procurement, sales, the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS), stock limits, and other regulatory measures should be announced well in advance. This would enable the industry to plan procurement, inventory management, and business operations more efficiently.

★ The industry also expressed concern that frequent government intervention creates uncertainty and disrupts normal market functioning. Participants stressed the need for greater consistency, transparency, and predictability in policy decisions, which would benefit both farmers and the industry.

★ It was observed that the annual increase in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) naturally provides long-term support to open market wheat prices.

★ On weather conditions, experts noted that the declaration of an El Niño event does not necessarily imply a severe monsoon deficit. They pointed out that widespread rainfall has been recorded across many parts of the country over the past several days. In addition, rising temperatures associated with the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) indicate the possibility of improved rainfall after August. Participants also acknowledged that the government is closely monitoring the impact of El Niño.

★ The conclave highlighted that higher government procurement in recent years has considerably strengthened India's food security. Given the comfortable level of government stocks, participants do not expect any significant shortage of wheat during the current season.

★ Industry representatives further observed that frequent policy changes over the past five years have fundamentally changed the way wheat trade is conducted, increasing policy-related risks for businesses.

★ Globally, wheat production and supplies were considered comfortable. Participants noted that Russian wheat FOB export prices had declined from around US$250 per tonne to US$225 per tonne over the past 15 days, reflecting ample global availability.

★ The conclave concluded that the future direction of both spot and futures wheat prices will continue to depend largely on government policy decisions. Nevertheless, most millers and traders maintained a bullish outlook on wheat prices in the coming months, although they acknowledged that market movements would remain closely linked to future policy actions.