India's ban boosts Nepali pulse exports

KATHMANDU, March 9: Export of pulses, mainly lentil, increased by a whopping 22.9 percent in the first six months of the fiscal year 2010/11, thanks to growing popularity of Nepali lentil in Bangladesh and ban on pulses export by India.



Nepal exported a total of 30,151 tons of lentil valued at Rs 2.75 billion during the first half of the current fiscal year, making lentil the country´s second largest exportable commodity during the period. Lentil exports during the same period in the last fiscal year stood at 22,338 tons valued at Rs 2.24 billion.[break]



Thanks to rise in lentil exports to Bangladesh, Nepal´s total export to the South Asian neighbor grew by a whopping 50 percent to Rs 2.82 billion during the period. Bangladesh is a key importer of Nepali lentil.



A fresh data released by the Trade and Export Promotion Center (TEPC) states that total exports of lentil during between mid- December and mid-January alone reached Rs 467.69 million.



Nepal had exported a total of 37,569 tons of lentils valued at Rs 3.74 billion - eight percent of the country´s total exports -- in the last fiscal year. Lentil was Nepal´s third largest exportable commodity during the year.



Officials at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) attribute the double-digit rise in exports of lentil to attractive international price and lift of a year-long ban on pulses export.



The government had imposed ban on pulse export from the beginning of 2009 on the back of skyrocketing price of pulse in the domestic market during the height of global food crisis.



"Nepali suppliers are getting attractive price for pulses in overseas market. The removal of export ban since last year is the other reason behind rise in export volume,” said Kailash Kumar Bajimaya, under-secretary at the MoCS.



Satish Kumar Bohra, deputy general secretary of Association of Nepalese Rice, Oil and Pulses Industries, echoed Bajimaya and added that rising popularity of Nepali lentil in Bangladesh and Indian ban on pulses export were the major reasons behind rise in the country´s pulses export.



"Nepali lentil is popular among overseas consumers because of its unique taste,” Bohra said.



Bangladesh has mainly been importing red whole lentil and red split lentil from Nepal.



Production of pulses - lentil, chick pea, pigeon pea, black gram, grass pea, horse gram and soybean -- increased to 262,356 tons during the fiscal year 2009/10, up from 255,384 tons recorded a previous year, states a data compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MoAC).

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