Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Shri Piyush Goyal participated in the opening day of the G20 Trade Ministers' Meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, hosted under the United States G20 Presidency on October 1, 2026. During the session on food and trade, Minister Goyal highlighted India's food security measures, noting that over 800 million people in India are currently being provided foodgrains free of cost. He emphasized that India ensured food security for over 1.4 billion citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic and supplied foodgrains to several countries in need.
Goyal reiterated that food must never be used as an instrument of pressure against any country and stressed that countries of the Global South are among the most adversely impacted by the food, fuel and fertiliser crises caused by global conflicts. He warned that today's fertiliser shortage could become tomorrow's food crisis. The Minister explained that India maintains public stockholding, procures from small and marginal farmers and, in the event of a harvest shortfall, adopts temporary and transparent measures to ensure the availability and affordability of food, which are recognised under the WTO through the Bali Ministerial Decision and the Geneva Ministerial Declaration.
Goyal referred to existing mechanisms including the G20 Agricultural Market Information System established in 2011 and the exemption of purchases by the World Food Programme from export restrictions adopted at the 12th Ministerial Conference of the WTO. He reaffirmed India's commitment to a rules-based, fair, non-discriminatory, equitable, transparent, open, inclusive and multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core.
The G20 Trade Ministers reached consensus on the outcome document 'G20 Statement on the Weaponization of Food through Coercive Trade Actions' and expressed their intent to continue cooperation on the subject. Earlier in the day, Goyal joined G20 Trade Ministers and United States Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer on a visit to the Rockwell Automation office and factory in Mequon, Wisconsin.
On the sidelines of the meeting, Goyal held bilateral meetings with the Minister of Development, Industry, Trade and Services and the Foreign Minister of Brazil; the United States Trade Representative; the European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security; the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade and President of the Board of Trade of the United Kingdom; the Secretary of Economy of Mexico; and the Minister of Finance and Economy of the Republic of Poland. The Minister also attended the welcome dinner hosted by Ambassador Greer and Secretary Rollins of the United States Department of Agriculture at the Milwaukee Art Museum.