Claim that the production of red lentils in India is much less than the government estimate

04-Jun-2025 07:35 PM

New Delhi. A leading trading firm has claimed that although the Union Agriculture Ministry has estimated red lentil production to rise to 18 lakh tonnes during the 2024-25 Rabi marketing season, the actual production may only be between 10 to 12 lakh tonnes.

In India, the government has been setting the minimum support price (MSP) for lentils for several years, keeping its price in the range of 700–800 dollars per tonne.

According to the firm, the current stock of lentils in the country is about 10 lakh tonnes, which includes stocks in government warehouses and imported goods stored at various ports. This quantity is considered sufficient to meet domestic demand for the next four to five months.

At present, the Indian government has imposed a 10 percent customs duty on lentil imports, which makes importation less economically attractive.

It is therefore unlikely that India will see large-scale lentil imports before October or November. While the global supply of red lentils is expected to exceed demand, there is concern that if drought conditions persist in key growing areas of Australia, global availability could fall by as much as 8 lakh tonnes.

Meanwhile, Turkey’s lentil stock from previous years has nearly been exhausted. The country usually imports around 5.00–5.50 lakh tonnes of lentils annually, mostly from Canada.

However, imports from Russia and Kazakhstan have grown significantly. In the 2023-24 season, Turkey imported 1.30 lakh tonnes from these two countries, which increased to 1.80 lakh tonnes in the 2024-25 season.

Lentil imports in Turkey could rise by 30 to 40 percent soon, compared to the earlier share of 20–25 percent.