The Pulse of Pulses: Story of Pigeonpea

The Pulse of Pulses: Story of Pigeonpea

David Bergvinson, DG, ICRISAT

International Trade Centre (ITC) and Indian Pulses and Grains Council (IPGA)

Key reasons for encouraging Trade of PulsesInnovations

• Improved varieties that integrate production and grain quality traits forincreased productivity and profitability of pulse production

• Mechanization of production and processing to increase profitability andtimely operations

New jobs and economic growth• Create new jobs in pulse value chains to increase quality of production,

reduce losses and realize value addition in rural communitiesBringing new competitive dynamics into the economic system

• ICT-enabled price discovery and trade to enhance value chain logistics,reduce transaction costs, enable traceability for quality control, agreedgrades and standards and automated validation to ensure equitable andmarkets for producers and value chain actors

Promoting the research-innovation system• Demand-driven research driven by market- and farmer-requirements

Bringing improved nutrition into modern food systems• Smart Food campaign is creating awareness among consumers about

nutritional, environmental and economic benefits of pulses withinmodern diets to address malnutrition, sustainable agriculture and ruraldevelopment

Story of Pigeonpea: Innovation to Stabilize Pulses

Volatility in pigeonpea production is not good for farmers who are out of phase and creates supply problems for processors

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Area Harvested (ha)

Production (t)

Yield (kg ha-1)

Area Production Yield/Productivity

Source: FAO 2012

Production Scenario of Pigeonpea in India

India area: 3.8 mill. haIndia production: 2.6 mill. t

India productivity: 697 kg ha-1

World area: 4.8 mill. haWorld production: 3.7 mill. t

World productivity: 774 kg ha-1

India imports ~ 500,000 tons of pigeonpea per year from Myanmar and Africa to meet consumption needs

• Test weight• Colour of Seed• No. of Seeds/Pod• Protein Content

Desirable Traits

• Dal Recovery (De-husking and Splitting)

Processing

• Moisture Content • Clean• Disease Free

Phyto Sanitary Requirements

• Fast Cooking time • Appearance and

Palatability

Consumer Preferences

Characteristics of Pigeonpea across Product Development Chain

Quality Standards: Pigeonpea Production

Desirable Traits (Properties of crop considered during selection)Test weight: 9-11 gmsColour of Seed: BrownNo. of Seed/Pod: 5-7nosProtein Content: 18-22% (Swaminathan and Jain, 1973)

Processing(Maximum recovery of consumable dal after milling)Dal Recovery (Easily removable husk): >70%Low processing loss (during de-husking and Splitting) (Saxena et al., 2010)

Quality Standards: Pigeonpea Supply Chain

Phyto Sanitary Requirements(Criteria for importing Pigeonpea in India)Moisture Content: 10%Damage: <2%Pathogen and Pest Free (Govindan, 2010)

Consumer Preferences(Factors make Pigeonpea appealing to end users)Less Cooking time (30-40 mins)Appearance and Palatability: Uniform size and yellow dal colour(Francis 1991; Saxena et al., 2010)

Country In thousand tons % increase

2001 2014 Production Area YieldTanzania 87.1 249.3 186 106 39Mozambique 31.6 120.9 282 261 6Malawi 105.8 301.0 184 69 68Kenya 73.46 274.5 274 68 122Uganda 80.0 93.6 17 28 -8E. S. Africa 380.6 1047.3 175 96 40

Growth trends for pigeonpea in Africa

Country Area (ha)

Production (t) Productivity(kg/ha)

India 5,062,000 3,290,000 650Myanmar 611,600 575,100 940Tanzania 276,400 249,250 902Kenya 276,124 274,523 994Mozambique 248,000 120,979 486Malawi 229,790 301,010 1309Haiti 111,950 90,480 808Uganda* 101,540 93,645 922Dominican R 23,088 24,615 1066Nepal 17,006 16,415 965

Top ten pigeonpea producers in 2014

Varietal cafeteria• A total of 33 varieties released in ESA.

• Kenya -8, Malawi-7, Mozambique-5, Tanzania-7, Uganda-2, Zambia-2,Sudan-1, Ethiopia- 1

• More than 90% of the varieties derived from breeding program based inAfrica using local germplasm

• A shift in maturity group adopted to ESA agro-ecologiesMaturity group Up to 2008 2009 onwardsShort duration 7 1Medium duration 3 10Long duration 7 5Total 17 16

Exports from Africa(000’ t)

Country 5 year range 2016 (expected)

Tanzania 75-90 70Mozambique 55-75 75Malawi 60-90 70Kenya 15-20 18Uganda 8-14 12Sudan* 40-50 45Africa 253-339 290

Source: Jayesh Patel 2016, ETG* Sudan data estimated

India imports about 570, 000 t annually

50% from Myanmar and 50% from Africa

ESA country Total no of varieties released

No of varieties released from ICRISAT-bred materials

% of varieties released from ICRISAT-bred materials

Ethiopia 27 15 (11 desi + 4 kabuli) 56%Kenya 6 6 (4 desi + 2 kabuli) 100%Tanzania 4 4 (2 desi + 2 kabuli) 100%

Varietal cafeteria is similar for chickpea

Journey to Pulse Profitability – for All

Ingredients for Success:

Seed, Systems, Capacity, Policies & PartnershipsMajor gaps: ;• Disconnect between quality seed demand and quality seed available/access• No premium for quality grain marketed at the producer level• Lack of market information/market intelligence• Grades and standards are not well developed based on market needs• Little/no mechanization in farm operations, harvesting and post-harvest handling

Opportunities: • Huge scope for seed production and delivery of market-preferred varieties (PPP)• Introduction of small scale machinery for timely planting of pulses, threshing,

community level processing for value addition (e.g. Dhal)• Introduction of grades and standards and premium for quality produce based

(digital imagery to provide objective pricing)• Promotion of Smart Food to expand domestic and regional markets, in addition to

international exports in order to stabilize prices • Creation of commodity markets and proper storage facilities to redcue losses,

increase quality (and value) and incentivize quality through eMarkets and warehouse receipts

Thank You