Pulse Atlas Data in Focus/
Exports stay strong for Uzbeki green mung beans despite 23% production decrease

Uzbekistan will produce 130,000 MT of green mung beans (GMB) in 2023, according to exclusive Pulse Atlas Data.

The drop in production can be attributed to a number of economic and weather-related challenges Uzbekistan has faced in the last year. Heavy rainfall in October 2022 destroyed almost 40% of GMB crops, which led to an overall drop in quality and a decrease in prices by 18-20% compared to the 2021/22 season, according to the Global Agriculture Info Group (Chinese Research Service). 

Though production looks modest this year, the export market remains strong and is dominated by China. Uzbekistan’s Statistics Agency saw that between January and April 2023, the country has exported 45,500 tonnes of GMB to 23 countries. Of this, around 42,000 tonnes were exported to China, followed by Pakistan (1,000 tonnes) and Kazakhstan (588 tonnes). 

Pulse Atlas: Uzbekistan numbers 

• With the exception of 2019 and 2023, exports of GMB have steadily increased in the last six years, from 66,000 MT in 2017 to 139 in 2022. 
• Data shows a sharply upward trajectory in China’s mung imports from Uzbekistan over the past five years, with volumes more than doubling between 2020 and 2021, from 44 thousand tonnes to 104 thousand tonnes.
• Planted area increased by 20% YoY in 2023 although there are concerns about drought impacting the crop. 

Insider insights 

Farkhod Rakhmatullaev, CEO of Sofia Agro. 

• “There are two main factors of mass production of beans in Uzbekistan. One is the shortage of water in the agriculture sector, leading farmers to choose crops which consume less water, like Green Mung Beans and Kidney beans. Also, strong demand for beans from East and South-East Asia.”
• “The main export destination of GMB for Sofia Agro is China. Despite many problems in the new season, Sofia Agro has achieved several high export numbers in 2022-23. 
• “There is a positive hope that the new season will not be as before. A comparable decline in GMB production in China, in response to its tight COVID restrictions, has made the country a very competitive market.”