Pulses imports to fall on more output, less consumption

The import of pulses, the cheapest and most accessible source of nutrition in daily food, is likely to decline at least 40 per cent this year, due to record domestic output estimate and a fall in the per capita consumption.

India imports nearly three million tonnes (mt) pulses every year from various countries — include Myanmar, Canada, Australia, France and South Africa. Sources in the sector say this will decline to less than two mt this year. India’s consumption is estimated at 20 mt and the crop size at 18-19 mt.

Until last year, the demand was burgeoning due to rise in population, plus the growing numbers of middle class families and rising incomes. However, a price spurt to all-time highs last year opened room for a substitute. As a consequence, yellow matar (peas), not frequently consumed until last year, came in demand. Since the commodity is abundantly available through imports at affordable prices, consumers shifted from tur, chana and urad to yellow peas.

Yellow peas are currently sold in a wide number of retail chains at Rs25 per kg, as against the price of Rs75-80 per kg for tur, Rs60-70 per kg for urad and Rs45-50 per kg for moong. Being equally nutritious, consumers were attracted, said K C Bharatiya, president of the Pulses Importers’ Association.

Meanwhile, the two stakeholders of imports, the public sector undertakings and private importers, have decided to wait until a clear picture on production emerges for kharif and rabi seasons before floating fresh orders. The rabi output is expected to be higher due to a 20 per cent increase in support prices.

According to Bharatiya, the government has estimated a 25 per cent decline in per capita consumption from 60g to 45g in the past one year. Last year, India’s consumption was 19.5 mt, as against the production of 14.57 mt. This big deficit resulted in spiralling prices. Tur went up Rs90 per kg, while urad surged to Rs75-80 per kg (it has since eased to Rs55-60 per kg and 45-50 per kg in the wholesale Vashi mandi.

This year, however, the output is likely to rise 25-30 per cent during 2010-11 to 18-19 mt. Still, the country will remain in deficit by 1-2 mt to meet the consumption of 20 mt. We require at least a million tonnes buffer, says Bharatiya.

The government has raised the minimum support price of the main rabi pulses crop, chana, by Rs340 to Rs2,100 per quintal, while that of masur has been revised upwards by Rs380 to Rs2,250 per quintal.