Green gram price soars to K1.8 mln per tonne on foreign demand

The price of green gram surged to approximately K1.8 million per tonne in the Mandalay market on the back of strong demand by foreign trade partners.
At the end of February, the green gram fetched K1,742,000 per tonne. The price climbed to K1,797,000 per tonne on 4 March 2023. The price showed an increase of K50,000 per tonne within days.
The newly harvested green gram started to enter the market at the end of 2022. The prices of green gram vary depending on qualities, the Mandalay commodity depot stated.
Myanmar has been preparing to export green gram to European Union countries in 2023, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation and the Ministry of Commerce agreed to export the green grams for sprouts in 2015.
The steering committee has been holding a series of meetings to call for bids, conduct awareness courses for the farmers and inspect farm-level processing regarding exports of the green grams for bean sprouts.
The Agriculture Department takes in-charge of farmer and collector inspection and testing, while the Consumers Affairs Department carries out processor inspection and training. Myanmar Inspection and Testing Service (MITS), the authorized organization of the State, was asked to monitor processor level to meet the criteria, food safety and quality standard set by the EU. Those inspectors from MITS are trained by the experts of the Plant Protection Division, the Agriculture Department and the German Development Agency GIZ.
MITS conducted inspections annually, with nine in 2018, 10 in 2019, six each in 2020 and 2021 and five in 2022 respectively.
For Myanmar’s bean and pulse exports to the EU, handling and hygiene practices are crucial for bean export to the EU.
The inspection undergoes the following stages; purchasing green grams, warehousing, processing and refining green grams, cargo handling for exports, quality control and health and hygiene of the workers.
The MITS undertakes inspections once at a factory that meets the criteria and standards. If the MITS finds the requirements during inspection, they set a timeframe for the factory manager to fix them. Then, they went on a second inspection tour. They present certificates for those factories that pass the test.
The MITS is ready to implement a processor-level test for those exporting companies to the EU this year. — NN/EM