The Sesame Trade Map
Ossiano Research · Agricultural trade
Open sesame. How one of the oldest crops is grown, traded and financed today.
People have traded sesame for more than 4,000 years. Today it is used in kitchens from Tokyo to Mexico City. In less than 10 years, Brazil became a major exporter. In 2025, China started to buy Brazilian sesame, and prices fell. This article follows sesame from the farm to the bottle of oil, and shows where traders need cash along the way.
~430x
Brazil's sesame exports in 2025 compared with 2015, by weight
From 1,239 tons to 532,098 tons.
34%
Share of Brazil's sesame exports that went to China in 2025, by value
2025 was China's first full year as a buyer. About 36% by weight.
-23%
Change in the average value per ton of Brazil's sesame exports, 2024 to 2025
In the same year, Brazil exported more than twice as much.
5.7x
Value per ton of Japanese sesame oil compared with Brazilian seed
2024 customs values. Processing adds the value.
Some terms have a short explanation. Tap or hover over words like this.
For importers and exporters
Sesame is harvested at one time of year and sold over many months
Importers and processors
Sesame is bought at harvest and sold slowly, as it is used. So processors in India, China and Japan hold stock for months. There are two main harvests: May to June in Brazil, and October to December in Africa and India. In 2025, seed was cheaper, so each shipment cost less.
Exporters
A few countries buy most of the sesame. In 2025, China and India bought more than half of Brazil's sesame. Large buyers often ask for time to pay. When prices fall, as they did in 2025, contracts signed earlier at higher prices can lose money.
Ossiano Capital works to pay the supplier on time and give the buyer time to pay. Our group has traded physical goods for 40 years in more than 50 countries. Talk to us about your next shipment →
01 · History
People have traded sesame for more than 4,000 years
Sesame was first grown on the Indian subcontinent. Archaeologists have found it at Harappan sites in the Indus Valley, dated to about 2600 to 2000 BCE. In Mesopotamia, writers in the city of Adab recorded sesame seed and oil around 2280 BCE. At about the same time, ships from the Indus region arrived at the port of Akkad.
Sesame then spread east and west. Tradition says the Chinese diplomat Zhang Qian brought it to China around 126 BCE. One old Chinese name for sesame means "foreign hemp." Sesame reached Japan from China in prehistoric times.
In America, the word "benne" for sesame comes from West African languages. The traditional account is that enslaved West Africans brought the seed with them. In 1746, a newspaper in Charleston advertised "SALLAD OYL of Cessamum or Benny Seed." This is the earliest known use of the word in English.
Sesame pods open when they are ripe, and a small touch drops the seeds on the ground. Old stories link this to the words "open sesame" in the Arabian Nights. For farmers, it is a real cost. Harvest losses, mostly from pods opening early, can be more than half the crop. In 1943, scientists found a sesame plant with pods that stay closed. Plant breeders used it to develop varieties that machines can harvest.
Today, Brazil, the newest large exporter, harvests sesame with the same machines it uses for soybeans. Before we look at Brazil, the next section shows where sesame is traded today.
02 · Trade routes
Where sesame is grown, processed and sold
Most sesame is grown in Africa, South Asia and, now, South America. The largest buyers are in Asia, the Middle East and North America. Processors work between the two. Examples are plants in India that remove the seed's outer skin, oil mills in China and Japan, and tahini makers in the Middle East.
The map shows the largest flows reported by the five countries in our data. Press play to see Brazil appear.
Figure 1
Where sesame seed and oil go, year by year
The largest flows between two countries, in tons, as reported by Brazil, India, the US, Canada and Singapore. Thicker lines mean more tons. Hover over or tap a line to see the number. Switch between seed and oil.
Source: UN Comtrade Plus, HS 120740 (sesame seed) and HS 151550 (sesame oil), yearly data reported by Brazil, India, the US, Canada and Singapore, 2015 to 2025. When the exporter is one of these five countries, we use its export data. Otherwise, we use the importer's data (). India and Singapore have not yet reported 2025, so the 2025 map shows data from Brazil, the US and Canada only. Trade between two countries outside the five, for example from Africa to China, is not in this data.
The map shows two things. First, Brazil is new. For most of the last ten years, the largest flows started in Sudan, Nigeria and India. Second, oil moves in a different direction from seed. Finished oil goes from Japan, Mexico, Taiwan, India and Singapore to North America, Europe and Australia.
China, the largest buyer, is not on the map, because it is not one of our five reporting countries. China accounted for 36.2% of world sesame imports, Revista Cultivar reported in November 2024. In the 12 months to September 2025, China imported 1.4 million metric tons, the US Department of Agriculture says. A year earlier, it imported 1.0 million. African countries supplied 68%. The market information service N'kalo, quoted by Ecofin Agency in November 2025, called China "the main driver of the global sesame trade."
Who uses all this sesame, and when do they buy it? That is the next section.
03 · Who consumes it
Who consumes sesame, and when they buy it
Sesame is used in many forms, for example whole seed on bread, paste in sauces, oil for cooking and flavor, and sweets for festivals. Each form needs a different quality of seed, and each quality has a different price.
Japan
Japan imports 99.9% of the sesame it uses. Roasted sesame oil is used every day. So is goma-dofu, a sesame "tofu" from Buddhist temple cooking at Koyasan. By value, Japan is the largest supplier of sesame oil to the US.
China
Sesame paste is used in Wuhan's hot dry noodles. It is also a common filling of tangyuan, sweet rice balls eaten at the Lantern Festival at the end of Lunar New Year. China is the largest sesame importer in the world.
South Korea
Sesame oil, chamgireum, is one of the main Korean sauces and seasonings, with soy sauce and chili paste. At Chuseok, the autumn harvest festival, families make songpyeon rice cakes. Some are filled with sesame.
India
India grows, eats and processes sesame. On January 14, at the Makar Sankranti festival, families give each other tilgul, sweets made of sesame and jaggery (raw cane sugar). They say "tilgul ghya ani god god bola": take this sweet and speak sweetly.
Middle East
Tahini is a paste of ground sesame. It is used in hummus, baba ganoush and halva. One Lebanese food company said 70% of its yearly sales come in the months before Ramadan and the month after.
Mexico and the US
Mexico's agriculture ministry lists sesame in mole poblano sauce and palanquetas, a sweet snack. In the US, sesame seed buns are common in fast food. Since January 1, 2023, sesame has been the ninth major allergen that US food labels must show. An allergen is a food that can cause a serious allergic reaction.
The US labeling rule had a surprising result. If a factory makes products with and without sesame on the same production line, it has to clean the line carefully to keep sesame out of the other products. That cleaning costs money. Some bakeries chose a cheaper way that is still legal. They added a small amount of sesame flour to products on purpose, and then labeled them as containing sesame. The US allergy group FARE said companies did this "to avoid the cost of cleaning their lines."
Restaurant chains were affected too. Chick-fil-A said its bread suppliers could not prevent sesame from mixing in on shared production lines, and it changed its buns to add a small amount of sesame flour. Olive Garden added less than 2% sesame flour to its breadsticks. The US Food and Drug Administration said in 2023 that it does not support this practice, because it limits the choices of people who are allergic to sesame.
When sesame is harvested, and when people buy it
There are two main harvest seasons. In most of Africa, and for India's main crop, the harvest is from October to December, after the rains. In Brazil, farmers plant sesame after soybeans in February and March, and harvest it in May and June. This means new seed reaches the market twice a year. Brazil's new crop arrives in the middle of the year, about six months after the African and Indian harvests. So buyers have a second time each year to buy fresh seed.
Demand also changes during the year, because many festival foods use sesame. Makar Sankranti is in January. Lunar New Year and the Lantern Festival fall between January and March. Chuseok is in September or October. Ramadan follows the Islamic lunar calendar, so it starts about 11 days earlier each year and can fall in any season. Holidays in China can also slow trade. In a 2017 trade report, Indian traders expected no Chinese demand for at least 10 days during a New Year holiday. They expected buying to start again after it.
Figure 2
When sesame is planted, harvested and eaten
The main months for planting and harvest in each country, and the festivals that increase demand. On a phone, swipe sideways.
Sources: ICAR-Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research (India seasons, Gujarat); Embrapa via Revista Cultivar and Notícias Agrícolas (Brazil, Mato Grosso); FAO and Sudan Tribune (Sudan, Gedaref); Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture and Blue Nile Research (Ethiopia, Humera); NCRI/STDF (Nigeria); La Nación and Infonegocios (Paraguay); Maharashtra Tourism, China Daily and The Korea Times (festivals). Lunar New Year, the Lantern Festival and Chuseok follow lunar calendars, so their dates change each year within the months shown. Ramadan is not shown, because it moves through every season.
The newest country on this calendar is Brazil.
04 · Brazil
Brazil's sesame exports grew more than 400 times in 10 years
In Brazil, sesame is a . Farmers in eastern Mato Grosso plant it on the same land after they harvest soybeans. They use the same machines, with some changes.
Farmers chose sesame for simple reasons. It grows in about 90 to 100 days. It costs little to grow and needs little fertilizer. Brazilian farm reports call it a profitable alternative to corn as a second crop.
The planted area grew quickly. It was about 53,000 hectares in 2018/19, according to Embrapa research. Brazil's crop agency, Conab, now estimates about 900,000 hectares for 2024/25.
Buyers came too. In 2019, a leader of the Mato Grosso farm federation said the region had at most two buyers two years earlier. He said farmers could now sign sales contracts before planting.
Figure 3
Brazil's sesame exports, by buyer country
Thousand tons. Switch to see the average value per ton. It fell in 2025, when the volume rose.
Source: UN Comtrade Plus, HS 120740, exports reported by Brazil. 2025 is the first full-year report and may be revised. Middle East includes Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Iraq and the UAE, among others. Americas includes Guatemala, Mexico and the US, among others.
Then China opened its market. Brazil and China agreed the rules for Brazilian sesame in November 2024, during a state visit. In March 2025, China approved 21 Brazilian exporters. By July, 61 Brazilian facilities were approved, up from 31.
In 2025, Brazil's exports more than doubled. China bought about a third and became Brazil's largest buyer. India, the largest buyer in 2023 and 2024, also bought more seed than in 2024.
But the average value per ton of Brazil's exports fell by almost a quarter in 2025. Conab's September 2026 estimate says the 2025/26 crop will be 44% smaller than the 2024/25 crop, on 37% less land. In two seasons, Brazil's supply grew very fast and then fell very fast.
India is one of Brazil's largest buyers, and Indian plants process imported seed. That is the next section.
05 · India
India buys raw sesame, processes it and sells it for more
India grows a lot of sesame, and it also processes sesame from other countries. Indian plants clean and sort the seed and remove its outer skin, called the hull. The result is white kernels for bakeries and food companies.
Much of this raw seed is imported. India has a scheme called . Under it, a processor can import raw sesame without paying import duty, if it exports the processed product. India's official rule allows 1.33 kilograms of raw seed for each kilogram of hulled seed exported.
Figure 4
Where India's imported sesame comes from
India's sesame seed imports by country of origin, thousand tons. Brazil has been the largest origin since 2023. Tap to switch to shares.
Source: UN Comtrade Plus, HS 120740, imports reported by India, 2015 to 2024. India has not yet reported 2025.
India's sources of seed change quickly. In 2019, most of India's imported seed came from Sudan. Imports fell sharply in 2021 and 2022, then rose again. By 2023, Brazil was the largest source. Sudan's harvest fell as conflict spread from April 2023. The FAO put Sudan's 2023/24 sesame harvest 39% below the five-year average.
Quality is another risk. In September 2020, European regulators found ethylene oxide, a chemical used to kill pests, in Indian sesame. Some levels were more than 1,000 times the legal limit. The EU then required checks on half of all Indian sesame shipments. India's oilseed export council made testing in approved labs mandatory, with a certificate for every shipment to the EU. A later EU audit found that the system was effective at keeping contaminated shipments out. For a lender, a contaminated shipment and a closed market are both risks to the value of the stock.
Processing is where sesame gains value. The next chart shows how much.
06 · Value per ton
Sesame is worth more after each step of processing
Customs data shows roughly where value is added. Each bar below is the average value of one ton of sesame in 2024, at a different step from farm to oil. These are averages across many grades and contracts. They show the general direction. They do not measure the profit of any one company.
Figure 5
From farm to bottle: average value per ton, 2024
US dollars per ton, from customs values. Seed is green and oil is orange.
Source: UN Comtrade Plus, HS 120740 and 151550, 2024. Value divided by net weight. Exports are valued . Imports are valued , which includes freight and insurance.
The differences are large. India sells its seed exports for more per ton than it pays for imported seed. Sesame oil is worth more again. Japanese oil sold to the US is worth several times more per ton than raw Brazilian seed. Singapore shows the same pattern: it imports sesame oil at about $3,300 a ton and exports it at about $5,600.
Japan's sesame oil market has one clear leader. Kadoya Sesame Mills reports about 44% of it, and also sells in the US.
In 2025, the price of raw seed fell. The next section looks at the reasons.
07 · Prices in 2025
Why sesame prices fell in 2025
Traders said the main reason was more supply. At the World Sesame and Peanut Conference in Istanbul in September 2025, speakers said production was growing, mainly in Brazil, Pakistan and Tanzania. They said this had pushed world prices down by $1,000 to $1,200 a ton. At that time, hulled Indian seed was priced at about $1,500 a ton FOB.
Prices fell in many countries. Burkina Faso cut its official minimum price for sesame by 14.4% for the 2025/26 season. Trade reports linked the cut to too much supply and weak demand from China. The US bought about the same amount of Indian seed in 2025 as in 2024, but paid about 18% less per ton.
Importers in China pay a tax on Brazilian seed that seed from many African countries does not pay. China charges a 10% tariff on sesame. A trade report from the Istanbul conference said: "African origins have a clear advantage here thanks to zero tariffs." Even so, China's food import chamber said Brazil supplied about 11% of China's sesame imports in 2025.
The US is a useful example. Figure 6 shows what it pays for seed and oil.
Figure 6
What the US pays for sesame seed and oil
US imports by country of origin, $ million. Switch between oil and seed. The US spends more on imported sesame oil than on imported seed.
Source: UN Comtrade Plus, HS 151550 and 120740, imports reported by the US, 2015 to 2025. 2025 may be revised.
Lower prices, months of stock, and buyers who want time to pay all affect a trader's cash. That is the subject of the last section.
08 · Financing
Where sesame traders need cash
Sesame passes from farmers to traders, processors and brand owners. At each step, someone pays before they are paid. The table shows where this happens, using public information.
Figure 7
Where cash is needed, from farm to shelf
| Step | What happens | What it means for cash |
|---|---|---|
| Before planting | In Brazil, buyers sign contracts with farmers before planting. | The buyer agrees on a price and a volume months before there is any seed to ship. |
| At harvest | Most seed is sold soon after harvest. In Brazil, farm finance often uses notes, and R$560 billion of them were registered by March 2026. In Ethiopia, banks lend against . | Ethiopian banks lend up to 70% of the value of stored goods, the head of the commodity exchange has said. This protects the bank if prices change. |
| In the processing plant | Indian processors import raw seed, clean it, remove the hull and export it again. | The processor pays for the stock during processing. Under the official rule, about a quarter of the raw weight is lost in hulling. |
| At the border | Food safety rules apply. In 2020, the EU required checks for pesticide residues on 50% of Indian sesame shipments. | If a test fails, the shipment can be held or the market can close. The exporter keeps the stock. |
| On the ship | Brazilian seed going to China pays a 10% tariff. Many African countries do not pay it. | If the price changes during the voyage, the owner of the cargo takes the gain or the loss. In 2025, Brazil's average export price fell by almost a quarter. |
| On the shelf | Oil mills and brand owners buy seed and sell oil and paste over many months. | This step has the highest value per ton. It also has the longest time between paying for seed and being paid for oil. |
Sources: Canal Rural (Brazil contracts before planting); MAPA via Agrolink (CPR); Addis Fortune (Ethiopia warehouse receipts); CESTAT Ahmedabad order of October 3, 2024 (India input rule); EUR-Lex, Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1540; USDA FAS (China tariff); UN Comtrade (prices). The hulling loss is our calculation from the 1.33 kg rule.
Figure 8
Try it: the base interest cost of one sesame shipment
Choose the shipment size, the price and the number of days until the buyer pays.
Value of the shipment
-
Interest at the rate only (3.87%)
-
Interest per ton, per month
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Shipment value = tons × price. Interest = value × 3.87% × days ÷ 360. Interest per ton per month = interest ÷ tons ÷ (days ÷ 30). SOFR for October 1, 2026, from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Prices from UN Comtrade (Brazil and Japan, 2025 averages) and Mundus Agri, September 18, 2025 (Indian hulled, 99.90%, FOB).
This calculator is an example to explain the idea. Real financing costs include the lender's extra interest (margin) and fees on top of the base rate. They also depend on the companies involved and the documents.
Practical checks
Before you sign your next sesame contract
Importers and processors
- Calculate the cost of holding stock from harvest to sale, at today's interest rates.
- Check when your supplier's country harvests, and whether a second country can supply you in other months.
- Agree on tests and documents with your supplier before loading, especially for the EU.
Exporters
- Check how much of your sales go to only one or two buyers.
- If you sign contracts before planting, include terms to review the price.
- Decide who will wait for payment if a buyer asks for 90 or 120 days.
Ossiano Capital buys from the supplier against shipping documents and sells to the buyer on terms of up to 120 days*. The supplier is paid on time, and the buyer has time to sell the goods. Contact us about your next trade →
*Tenor and terms are subject to Ossiano's underwriting.
Three observations
OBSERVATION 01
Supply can double, then fall by almost half, in two seasons
Brazil's exports more than doubled in 2025. Conab expects the 2025/26 crop to be 44% smaller than the year before. Contracts and credit limits based on one season can be wrong in the next.
OBSERVATION 02
Value is added in processing
India buys raw seed and sells hulled seed for more per ton. Oil sells for more again. The longer a company holds stock during processing, the more cash it needs to run the business.
OBSERVATION 03
China is the largest buyer, and its demand affects prices
China imports more sesame than any other country. When it opened its market, a large part of Brazil's crop went to China in a single year. In 2025, trade reports linked weaker Chinese demand to a lower minimum price in Burkina Faso.
Summary
Sesame is an old crop, and its trade is changing fast
For thousands of years, sesame moved from South Asia and Africa to the people who cooked with it. That is still true, but there are new routes. In less than 10 years, Brazil became a large exporter. China opened its market to Brazilian seed, and prices fell as supply grew.
For importers, there is cheaper seed and a second harvest season. The risk is that supply changes faster than contracts. For exporters, a few large buyers take most of the volume, and falling prices make contracts signed earlier harder to keep.
At every step from farm to bottle, someone needs cash before they are paid: for contracts before planting, for buying at harvest, for months of processing and storage, and for buyers who want time to pay. This is the work of trade finance, and it is what Ossiano Capital does.
For questions about how these changes affect your current or planned trade finance, contact Ossiano Research.
Primary trade data (directly used)
- UN Comtrade Plus, HS 120740 and HS 151550, annual exports and imports reported by Brazil, Canada and the US (2015 to 2025) and by India and Singapore (2015 to 2024), downloaded October 2026. Figures 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6; all trade volumes, values, shares and values per ton. 2025 filings are the first full-year reports and may be revised.
- Conab, Boletim da Safra de Grãos, 12th survey, 2025/26, September 2026. Sesame area and production for 2024/25 and 2025/26.
- USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, China Oilseeds and Products Annual, CH2026-0032, March 19, 2026 (China imports in MY24/25, origins), and CH2024-0042, March 20, 2024 (10% MFN tariff).
- FAO, Crop and Food Supply Assessment Mission to Sudan, March 19, 2024. Sudan's 2023/24 sesame production.
- Federal Reserve Bank of New York, SOFR, October 1, 2026. Figure 8.
Regulatory and official sources
- Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil (MAPA), China approves 21 Brazilian companies for sesame exports, March 2025.
- Revista Cultivar, Brasil e China firmam acordo para exportação de gergelim, November 21, 2024. Market opening agreed during a state visit; China's share of world sesame imports in 2023.
- O Imparcial, citing MAPA, approved facilities rise from 31 to 61, July 31, 2025.
- European Union, Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1540, October 22, 2020. 50% checks on Indian sesame; ethylene oxide levels.
- Indian Oilseeds and Produce Export Promotion Council (IOPEPC), Procedure for control of contamination in sesame seeds for export to EU countries; and Food Safety News, EU audit covers ethylene oxide in sesame from India, May 30, 2023.
- Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Ahmedabad, Final Order 12308-12310/2024, Dhaval Agri Exports LLP v Commissioner of Customs, Mundra, October 3, 2024. Advance Authorisation and the 1.33 kg input norm for hulled sesame.
- US Food and Drug Administration, FASTER Act: sesame is the ninth major food allergen; and FDA Voices, update on sesame allergen labeling, July 27, 2023.
- Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE), FARE responds to companies intentionally adding sesame flour as FASTER Act goes into effect. Reason given: the cost of cleaning production lines; and ABC7 Chicago, New law causing unintended consequences for those with major food allergies, February 20, 2023. Statements from Chick-fil-A and Olive Garden.
- ICAR-Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research, Sesame package of practices. India planting and harvest seasons.
- Gobierno de México, Agricultura, Producto: Ajonjolí. Uses in Mexico.
- Maharashtra Tourism, Makar Sankranti.
Market and sector reporting
- Mundus Agri, Sesame seeds: China imports exceed 1 million mt, September 18, 2025, reporting the World Sesame and Peanut Conference. Price fall, Indian FOB quotes, zero-tariff advantage of African origins.
- Mundus Agri, Sesame seeds: Holiday in China hold demand, October 3, 2017. Chinese holidays pause buying.
- Ecofin Agency, Burkina Faso cuts sesame price as global demand falls, November 2025; and Milling MEA, Burkina Faso reduces the floor price of sesame by 14.4%, November 8, 2025.
- Notícias Agrícolas, Brazil's share of China's 2025 sesame imports, April 13, 2026, citing China's food import chamber (CFNA); and Produção de gergelim cresce 107%, November 21, 2024 (reasons for adoption, planting and harvest months).
- Revista Cultivar, Cultivo do gergelim no Brasil cresce 230% em um ano, August 10, 2021 (Embrapa/UFMT area figures); and Embrapa on sesame as a second crop, May 24, 2012.
- Canal Rural, Gergelim, alternativa para a segunda safra, June 20, 2019. Buyers and pre-planting contracts.
- Agrolink, citing MAPA, CPR registrations reach R$560 billion, April 27, 2026.
- Addis Fortune, ECX warehouse receipt financing. Banks lend 70% of collateral value; and ECX introduces receipt financing, August 3, 2019.
- Kadoya Sesame Mills, FY2025 results presentation, May 26, 2026. Market share in Japan.
- Gholamhoseini et al., To shatter or not to shatter, OCL, March 17, 2026; and Oklahoma State University, FAPC-238 Sesame, August 2021. Shattering losses, the 1943 mutation, "open sesame."
History and culture
- LMU Munich, Mesopotamian Oil project, The beginnings of sesame cultivation. Harappan finds, Adab texts, ships from Meluhha.
- Shurtleff and Aoyagi, SoyInfo Center, History of Sesame (100 CE to 2022), 2022. Zhang Qian and the name "foreign hemp."
- Charleston County Public Library, Benne seeds in the Lowcountry, August 10, 2018.
- Nippon.com, Goma: sesame in Japanese cuisine. Import dependence; arrival from China. Visit Wakayama, goma-dofu at Koyasan.
- The Korea Times, Sesame oil sommelier, February 14, 2019; and Enjoy flavors of songpyeon, October 1, 2009.
- China Daily, It's Lantern Festival, time to have a ball, March 3, 2026; and South China Morning Post, Wuhan hot dry noodles.
- ANBA, Cortas sales concentrated around Ramadan, May 14, 2019.
- Sudan Tribune, Gedaref's sesame harvest begins, October 5, 2024; NCRI/STDF, Sesame value chain in Nigeria, 2014; Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture, Setit-3 variety; Blue Nile Research, Humera new crop, October 29, 2018; La Nación, Paraguay sowing, November 2, 2023; Infonegocios, Paraguay harvest begins, January 31, 2020.
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