Australia: January chickpea exports surge, lentils dip

Australia exported 92,287 tonnes of chickpeas and 149,266t of lentils in January, according to the latest export data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The chickpea figure is up 49 percent from the 62,078t shipped in December to reflect increased new-crop availability after a delayed harvest in Queensland.

Lentils shipments dropped 9pc for the month from 163,196t shipped in December, again due to the lateness of harvest.

Also, ports in Victoria and South Australia concentrated January-shipment efforts on canola and wheat, leaving little room for pulses on the busy stem.

The major destinations for January-shipped chickpeas were Pakistan on 41,382t and Bangladesh on 38,225t, followed by Nepal on 4570t.

On lentils, Turkiye on 35,155t followed by India on 32,315t and Bangladesh on 28,225t were the biggest markets.

Table 1: Australian chickpea exports for November and December 2022 and January 2023. Source: ABS

Table 2: Australian lentil exports for November and December 2022 and January 2023. Source: ABS

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