India's DAP imports from China plunge to 97,000 tonnes in July amid regulatory hurdles

New Delhi: India's import of Di Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) from China has declined sharply and stood at 97,000 tonnes in July this year, Parliament was informed on Friday. DAP is the second most consumed fertiliser after urea in India.

Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Anupriya Patel said DAP import from China declined from approximately 22.28 lakh tonnes in 2023-24 to about 8.47 lakh tonnes in 2024-25 as reported by fertiliser companies.

"In July 2025, approximately 0.97 lakh tonnes of DAP have been imported from China," the minister said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

Phosphatic and Potassic (P&K) fertilisers, including DAP, are under Open General License (OGL). The fertiliser companies are free to import/manufacture these fertilisers as per their business dynamics.

Citing reasons for the decline in DAP import, the minister said in October 2021, China amended its catalogue of commodities requiring mandatory additional inspection prior to export of fertiliser-related items, including DAP.

The regulatory requirement led to an increase in the CFR (Cost and Freight) price of DAP for India from USD 542 per tonne in April 2024 to approximately USD 800 per tonne in July 2025.

The minister said Ammonium Phosphate Sulphate (APS) may serve as a partial alternative to DAP, particularly in sulphur-deficient soils and for sulphur-demanding crops.

APS supplies nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulphur, but contains a lower phosphorus content of 20 per cent as compared to 46 per cent in DAP. Thus, APS is a crop- and soil-specific supplement.