Markets

Australia exports 41,122t chickpeas, 87,055t lentils in Jan

Liz Wells March 11, 2024

A load of lentils harvested late last year tips at Australian Grain Export’s Dublin facility north of Adelaide.

AUSTRALIA exported 41,122 tonnes of chickpeas and 87,055t of lentils in January, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Both figures are down sharply from the December totals, chickpeas by 64 percent and lentils by 62pc.

The drop in chickpea volume represents the usual season rundown, while lentils’ drop reflects competition in South Australian and Victorian ports from new-crop ASW-type wheat.

On chickpeas, Bangladesh on 25,179t followed by Pakistan on 4466t and the United Arab Emirates on 3924t were the largest markets for January-shipped product.

On lentils, India on 42,709t, Egypt on 17,182t and Sri Lanka on 10,641t were the largest markets.

January sales of lentils to Egypt are up sharply from 2384t shipped in December.

Egypt generally buys Australian lentils in containers, but occasionally buys bulk when importing combination cargoes also carrying Australian faba beans.

Houthi attacks quashed the trade’s willingness to send container vessels through the Red Sea, but bulk vessels have been seen as a safer option.

Australia’s previous biggest month of bulk lentil exports to Egypt occurred in September 2023 and totaled 26,940t.

 

CHICKPEAS Nov Dec Jan Tonnes
Bangladesh 6624 95484 25179 127288
Belgium 0 0 44 44
Canada 1775 736 707 3217
Egypt 0 0 375 375
Fiji 0 25 47 72
Germany 0 0 50 50
India 463 3117 1799 5379
Indonesia 0 25 0 25
Italy 165 197 437 798
Japan 22 43 0 65
Lebanon 0 48 0 48
Malaysia 141 388 473 1002
Mauritius 50 150 124 324
Nepal 3426 3770 1030 8225
Netherlands 0 125 25 150
New Zealand 68 20 137 225
Pakistan 3483 2897 4466 10846
Papua New Guinea 0 0 0 0
Saudi Arabia 72 48 0 120
Singapore 70 187 177 434
South Africa 11 95 0 106
South Korea 133 49 64 246
Spain 0 0 20 20
Sri Lanka 422 220 202 844
Thailand 1106 0 75 1181
Turkiye 0 678 0 678
UAE 13175 2712 3924 19811
UK 581 1095 1659 3335
US 910 764 85 1758
Vietnam 0 0 24 24
Yemen 0 100 0 100
TOTAL 32698 112972 41122 186792

Table 1: Australian chickpea exports in November and December 2023 and January 2024. Source: ABS

LENTILS Nov Dec Jan Tonnes
Bahrain 1106 110 856 2072
Bangladesh 645 22154 3011 25810
Canada 0 2 0 2
Egypt 1603 2384 17182 21169
Fiji 0 1 0 1
India 98907 147882 42709 289497
Indonesia 1 1 0 2
Malaysia 0 49 22 71
Mauritius 73 24 0 97
Nepal 4160 1071 2506 7737
New Zealand 0 12 51 62
Pakistan 4331 6450 8450 19231
Papua New Guinea 1 0 0 1
South Africa 0 116 0 116
South Korea 0 24 72 96
Sri Lanka 7429 8478 10641 26548
Taiwan 0 0 3 3
Turkiye 503 27100 0 27603
UAE 250 14764 1503 16517
UK 0 25 49 74
US 0 7 0 7
TOTAL 119009 230652 87055 436715

Table 2: Australian lentil exports in November and December 2023 and January 2024. Source: ABS

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