Lentils show the benefit of recent rain at the SA Grain Legume site at Melrose in SA’s Upper North. Photo: Sarah Day, SARDI

AUSTRALIA exported 45,056 tonnes of chickpeas and 139,011t of lentils in May, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The chickpea figure is roughly double the 22,048t shipped in April, and reflects India’s long-awaited removal of tariffs on Australian chickpeas.

Exports of Australian chickpeas to India jumped from just 270t in April to 21,916t in May, with the United Arab Emirates on 6787t and Bangladesh and 6159t the second and third-biggest markets respectively for May-shipped chickpeas.

On lentils, India on 65,529t was the biggest market for May-shipped product, followed by Bangladesh on 39,457t and Sri Lanka on 14,617t.

Lentil exports for May were up 23pc from the April total of 112,602t, with shipments to India up sharply from 23,830t.

Table 1: Australian chickpea exports for February, March and April 2024. Source: ABS

Table 2: Australian lentil exports for February, March and April 2024. Source: ABS

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