12 August
Myanmar exported more than 56,000 tons of pigeon peas in the seven months from January to July, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
Last year, changes in India’s pulses importation policy drove pigeon peas growers to reduce acreage or switch to crops, such as black sesame or other bean varieties. While nearly 1.6 million acres of pigeon peas was cultivated in the previous years, now, the acreage has plummeted by 30 per cent.
Earlier, India had announced an import quota of 200,000 tons for pigeon peas, but later, to meet its domestic demand, it had extended the quota limit to 400,000 tons. However, pigeon peas have to be exported to India by 31 October, according to the Myanmar Pulses, Beans and Sesame Seeds Merchants Association.
At present, pigeon peas are fetching around K900,000-K1 million per ton. Myanmar’s pigeon peas are shipped to markets in India, Singapore, the US, Canada, Pakistan, the UK, and Malaysia. But, the export volume is extremely small compared with mung beans and green grams.
In the 2016-2017 fiscal year, over 160,000 tons of pigeon peas were shipped to foreign countries, while in the 2017-2018FY, exports crossed 220,000 tons. — GNLM (Translated by Ei Myat Mon)
