Prices of urad (black matpe or black gram) have started rising following crop damage in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. The current situation has ensured that the urad trade has strong fundamentals and prices are likely to remain firm until the new crop arrives in Myanmar, traders say.
The urad crop in Tamil Nadu has been hit by floods and heavy rains due to Cyclone Fengal and the subsequent low pressure. In Andhra Pradesh, the crop has been affected by the yellow mosaic virus.
“The crop around Villupuram region of Tamil Nadu has been lost. The news from the urad growing region near Ongole in Andhra Pradesh is also not good,” said B Krishnamurthy, Managing Director of Chennai-based Four P International.
Decrease in area
“In northeastern parts of Karnataka, urad crop was damaged due to incessant rainfall during harvest. “There was no rain for almost a month. It had a bad impact on quality and output. Farmers would have hardly harvested around 20 per cent of the expected crop in the region,” said Basavaraj Ingin, president of the Karnataka Pradesh Red Gram Growers Association in Kalaburgi.
Besides urad, moong crop was also affected by excessive rainfall but the damage was less compared to urad, he said.
Kharif area under urad fell to around 30 lakh hectares (lh) this year from 32.60 lh a year ago. The area under cultivation fell in Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Rajasthan, while it increased in Karnataka, Maharashtra, UP and Andhra Pradesh.
25% production drop
The decline in coverage combined with adverse weather conditions during the growing season damaged crops in several producing states, not only hurting quality but also reducing yields.
According to initial estimates by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, kharif urad production is expected to decline by 25 per cent to 12.09 lakh tonnes from 16.04 lakh tonnes in 2023-2024.
The crop damage has led to urad prices rising to ₹8,100 per quintal from ₹7,400 a month ago, data from the Agmarknet portal, a unit of India’s Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, showed.
On the global market, Myanmar increased its export prices to India and Pakistan by $10 to $20 per tonne. According to the Myanmar Pulses, Beans, Maize and Sesame Seeds Association, the shelled whole/split superior quality 2023-24 black matpe will be offered for $1,085-1,105/ton for free on board on Tuesday.
Myanmar’s harvest is good
“The Telangana crop is reported to be good. The yield will also be good and at least 60,000 tonnes can be produced,” said Krishnamurthy.
The other good news for the global market is that the Myanmar crop sown in November is good, including its quality. “Myanmar’s harvest could be close to a million tons,” said the general manager of Four P International.
The harvest from Myanmar will arrive in late February or early March, easing the situation somewhat. India’s rabi crop could arrive soon after. So the situation could ease around March-April.
The scenario could depend on the arrival of rabi urad. Once the arrival is over, the Indian market may be dependent on imports, including from Brazil.
Brazil, Russian supplies
“Brazil exported 50,000 tons of urad to India this year. Next year, we expect the country to export 1.5 million tonnes,” said Krishnamurthy.
Trade sources said Russia wants to export urad to India. The country has already started significant exports of yellow peas to India while receiving permission to ship green lentils.
“India needs 2.5 lakh tonnes of urad every month. In total, we need 25 million tonnes until the Kharif crop arrives in October next year. Stocks could be a little over 16 million tonnes,” Krishnamurthy said. Small harvests could come from a few sources, improving supplies.
