Posted on January, 12, 2018 at 10:45 am
Beans and pulses produced in Myanmar have long relied on the Indian market, but the industry has started broadening their horizons to another giant market - China, said U Aung Soe, director general from Myanmar’s Trade Promotion Organisation under the Ministry of Commerce.
A delegation, which consists of officials from the ministry and nine companies which are part of the Myanmar Pulses, Beans and Sesame Seeds Merchants Association, attended the Myanmar Beans and Pulses Market Promotion Forum on January 8 at the Myanmar trade representative office in Nanning, capital of China’s autonomous Guangxi region.
The forum attracted 90 Chinese companies. The event was the first kind of its kind.
“This is the first time we organise an event like this and it was a success. It also attracted Chinese traders. We can’t know how the demands will increase but it’s sure that they will buy more,” he told The Myanmar Times on January 11.
Since a few years ago, China started importing green gram from Myanmar and also bought a small amount of matpe since last year.
Indians and Muslims who have been residing in China are potential consumers, as well as Chinese people who live in the borders along Azerbaijan and Russia. Hence, China is a big potential market for beans and pulses, U Aung Soe said.
The trade representative centre in China will continue to organise similar events and will promote products from Myanmar.
The Indian government changed its policy last year and have disrupted Myanmar’s beans and pulses market as a result. Therefore, Nay Pyi Taw is now seeking other prospective markets to diversify their reach.
Now the country has resumed its exports to India. The export volume has not changed but the price has fallen.
“Despite the lower prices, export volume has not fallen. This is because prices went up due to speculations. Now prices have returned to normal,” the director general said.
In the meantime, Myanmar has also exported green grams of special quality to the European market as well as to Japan and South Korea. Farmers don’t need to worry about the lack of markets. The challenge is to produce a decent variety of crops and the technical know-how, for example, using the right amount of insecticide.
Source: MyanmarTimes