Agriculture & Food

According to data from the Myanmar Ministry of Commerce, in the first seven months of this fiscal year, Myanmar’s agricultural exports reached US$3.289 billion, an increase of US$901 million over the same period last year. In the face of difficulties in exporting aquatic products, livestock products, mineral products, forest products and various industrial products, agricultural exports have grown against the trend and accounted for 22% of Myanmar’s total exports.

Myanmar mainly exports various agricultural products such as rice, broken rice, beans, corn, vegetables, fruits, sesame, dried tea, and sugar. China, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka are the main export destinations of Myanmar's agricultural products.

Myanmar exports 6.886 million tons of agricultural products from Yangon

On May 15th, U Niu Aung, Chairman of the Working Committee for Safeguarding Trade and Goods Flow of Myanmar and Deputy Minister of Commerce, held a seminar on rice export with the heads of the Myanmar Port Department and the Myanmar Rice Association to inspect the rice reserves at the No. 7 port of Sule.

As of May 12 this fiscal year, Myanmar exported 6.886 million tons of agricultural products from Yangon International Port, including: 1.3063 million tons of rice, 2.0351 million tons of corn, 1.113 million tons of beans, 217,000 tons of sesame, 209,000 tons of rubber and 2.0052 million tons of other agricultural products. Among them, from February 2021 to May 12, a total of 3.4458 million tons of agricultural products were exported.

Myanmar legume exports increase by more than 200 million U.S. dollars

According to the Ministry of Commerce, in the seven months of this fiscal year (October 1, 2020 to April 30, 2021), exports of beans were 1.144 million tons, an increase of 159,000 tons over the same period last year, and the export value was US$ 931 million, an increase of more than 200 million over the same period last year. US dollars.

The most exported beans in Myanmar are rye beans, mung beans and pigeon peas. Rye beans and pigeon peas are mainly exported to India, and mung beans are mainly exported to China and Europe. In the 2018/2019 fiscal year, exports of rye beans totaled US$326 million, mung beans US$347 million, and pigeon beans US$101 million, for a total of US$774.4 million.

A person in charge of the Ministry of Commerce stated that in the past, Myanmar beans were only exported to India. Now the market has expanded to Europe, Japan, China and other places. In the next two years, beans export will no longer encounter difficulties. Recently, the markets for rye beans and pigeon peas, which are mainly exported to India, have been deserted, but the market for mung beans exported to China and the European Union is as promising as in previous years.

The agricultural sector in Myanmar accounts for more than 30% of GDP. The main crops include rice, corn, cotton, sugar cane and various beans. Beans are the second largest crop after rice, accounting for 33% of agricultural output and 20% of the planting area. Among them, black beans, pigeon peas and mung beans account for 72% of the bean planting area.