Wheat · guide
Wheat sits under heading 1001, and choosing the right code takes two questions: is it durum or not, and is it for sowing or for milling? The answers decide the subheading, the paperwork and where the shipment appears in trade data.
| Market | Imports | Year |
|---|---|---|
| China | $14.8B | 2024 |
| Mexico | $8.0B | 2024 |
| Egypt | $6.8B | 2024 |
| Indonesia | $6.8B | 2024 |
| Japan | $6.7B | 2024 |
| Vietnam | $5.5B | 2023 |
| Market | Exports | Year |
|---|---|---|
| United States | $24.4B | 2024 |
| India | $11.9B | 2024 |
| Argentina | $10.1B | 2024 |
| Ukraine | $9.4B | 2024 |
| Brazil | $9.4B | 2024 |
| Canada | $9.4B | 2024 |
Figures are for the whole of HS chapter 10 (cereals). Source: UN Comtrade.
Wheat belongs to chapter 10, cereals, and its heading is 1001, titled wheat and meslin. Meslin is a mixture of wheat and rye, and it shares the heading with wheat. The first four digits identify the heading, and the six-digit subheadings below it split the heading by wheat type and by use.
A scope point for anyone reading trade figures: the statistics on this site are compiled at chapter level, so chapter 10 includes rice, maize, barley and other grains together with wheat. A chapter figure tells you how large cereal trade is, but does not isolate wheat. To see wheat alone, filter shipment records to heading 1001.
The structure has two branches, durum wheat and everything else, and each branch divides again into seed and non-seed. The subheadings you may need are these.
Durum wheat is a distinct species with hard, translucent, amber kernels, used for pasta and semolina. Common wheat, which covers bread wheat and most soft and hard red or white classes, is a different species. Classification follows the species, not the milling use, so a lot of hard bread wheat is not durum even though the word hard appears in its trade name.
Buyers and inspectors may verify the species by kernel appearance, vitreousness and sometimes laboratory tests. If your consignment could be a mix, for instance a lot of common wheat with some durum admixture, classify by what the goods predominantly are and describe the admixture on the certificate. When you cannot decide, ask your customs authority for a written classification opinion instead of guessing.
The tariff separates wheat for sowing from wheat for everything else. Seed usually needs certification showing variety, purity and germination, and moves under stricter plant health rules. Declaring grain as seed to gain some advantage, or the reverse, is a classification error that customs can penalise, and it can void a certificate.
Wheat processed beyond the grain leaves the heading. Wheat flour, semolina, groats, bran, gluten, starch and pasta are in other chapters, since they are milled or prepared products. Cracked or kibbled wheat also raises questions, because once the grain is broken or worked the classification may move to a heading for worked cereal grains. Check the heading notes before you assume the whole product stays in 1001.
The first six digits are shared by countries using the Harmonized System, but each customs authority adds its own digits, and the additional digits can carry different duty rates, licence categories, quota lines or statistical breakdowns. An exporter should therefore treat the six-digit code as a starting point.
Ask the buyer’s customs broker which national code the import declaration will use, compare it with your own export declaration, and resolve any difference. If the duty treatment depends on classification, get a binding or advance ruling where the authority offers one. Do not assume that a code used in one country’s tariff is what another country will apply, and confirm current duty and licensing rules with the destination customs authority.
With the right subheading in hand, search customs shipment records. Filtering on 100119 surfaces pasta makers and semolina mills buying durum. Filtering on 100199 shows the wider population of flour mills, feed compounders and traders. Records show consignee names, quantities, declared values and origin countries, so you can see who buys and where they currently source.
Then place the results against the chapter table. Among importers of cereals as a whole, China leads at $14.8B, followed by Mexico at $8.0B and Egypt at $6.8B. On the exporter side, the United States leads at $24.4B, ahead of India at $11.9B, which ranks 2 of 96, and Argentina at $10.1B. Those are cereal totals, so use them only as a first filter, then move to heading 1001 to build a real wheat buyer list.
Wheat is classified under heading 1001. For milling grain, use 100119 for durum wheat and 100199 for other wheat. Seed uses 100111 or 100191. Confirm the longer national code with your customs authority.
Meslin is a mixture of wheat and rye, and it shares heading 1001 with wheat. It is rare in trade compared with plain wheat, but the tariff descriptions include it, so you will see the word in the subheading texts.
Yes. The tariff splits wheat into durum and other wheat, then divides each into seed and non-seed. Durum used for pasta and semolina falls under 100119 unless it is seed.
No. Wheat flour, semolina, bran, starch and pasta are milled or prepared products and belong to other chapters. Heading 1001 covers the grain itself, so check the tariff notes for the processed product.
Customs shipment records list the declared code beside each consignee, quantity and value. Searching by the right subheading gives you wheat buyers instead of the whole cereals chapter, and stops seed or durum results mixing into your list.
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