Qingdao Pulses Congress recap/
Reading the signals of diversification, disruption and innovation in a changing market

China’s pulse industry is becoming more competitive and demanding, with shifting origins, rising imports and emerging processing opportunities creating a new landscape for international suppliers. Across three days of market analysis, trade discussions and practical insights, the 2026 gathering in Qingdao pointed to a global pulse ecosystem where access, quality, logistics and local demand are becoming increasingly important.

Opening the congress, CFNA Vice President Xu Xiaohu described pulses as a “small bean connecting a big world,” linking producers and consumers, tradition and modernity, and East and West. He identified a shift in China’s pulse industry from growth in volume toward greater value, with increasing emphasis on quality, branding and processed products. He also pointed to the potential for China to provide greater stability to global trade through sustained demand and a broader range of approved origins, while stressing the importance of innovation and cooperation across areas ranging from smart agriculture and improved yields to protein extraction and other higher-value applications.

GPC President Vijay Iyengar placed those developments in a broader global context, emphasizing the importance of relationships across the pulse value chain. He highlighted China’s expanding role in plant proteins and starches, alongside advances in processing technologies and the country’s wider focus on nutrition, and called on consumers, businesses and policymakers to play their part in growing pulse consumption. His message was clear: the sector is stronger when production and consumption grow together, with international cooperation helping connect markets and create new opportunities.

China’s economic transformation was the focus of the macroeconomic keynote by Zhou Mi of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation. He described an economy undergoing structural change, with manufacturing, services and high-technology industries continuing to drive growth while consumption patterns evolve. Imports are growing faster than exports, and a broader range of products and origins is entering the market. For international pulse suppliers, the implications extend beyond the size of China’s consumer base: regional preferences, nutritional priorities and new retail channels are creating a more diverse market to navigate.

China imported around 1.85 million tons of dry pulses in the first half of 2026, according to Meng Weihua, Managing Director of Nanjing Bonagro, who also highlighted major shifts in the country’s supply map. Russia has overtaken Canada as China’s leading pea supplier, India has become the largest source of mung beans, Kazakhstan has strengthened its position in lentils, and chickpea imports are continuing to expand. At the same time, domestic production of several pulse crops is under pressure, while changing diets and lower-priced imports are opening new channels of consumption.

Providing a more detailed view of those trade flows, Zhang Xiaoming of Yian County Huifeng Agricultural Products examined China’s import and export situation across peas, mung beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils and red adzuki beans. He highlighted the expansion of China’s approved supply origins, noting that kidney bean access has grown from seven countries to twelve, while Brazil is actively working with Chinese authorities to gain access for its beans and pulses. The data also showed how quickly trade patterns can change: Russia has moved ahead of Canada in pea supplies, India has become China’s leading mung bean supplier, and Kazakhstan has gained ground in lentils on the back of competitive pricing and direct rail connections into western China. At the same time, tariffs and quality requirements are reshaping established flows, while concerns over uneven mung bean quality underline the importance of closer coordination between buyers, sellers, growers and regulators.

The practical side of entering China came into focus in the keynote by Qingdao Customs Deputy Director Su Maowen, who outlined the requirements exporters need to address before cargo arrives. Market access, overseas enterprise registration, quarantine approvals, documentation, labeling and pesticide-residue controls all play a role in clearance, with non-compliant cargo potentially facing return or destruction. The presentation underlined how closely trade opportunities are tied to understanding and meeting China’s regulatory requirements.

A different route into international markets was presented by Lei Li, Marketing Director at the DMCC China Representative Office, who examined Dubai’s role as a hub for global commodity trade. She highlighted the emirate’s strategic location, extensive air and maritime connections, business environment and trade-financing infrastructure, including DMCC’s Tradeflow platform. With more than 26,000 companies from 187 countries and territories, DMCC provides an established base for companies seeking to connect trade between the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia and other global markets.

The Shipping and Logistics panel added another layer, as Black Sea disruption, freight and insurance costs and tighter vessel availability continue to affect the economics of international trades. Panelists also examined documentation, customs declarations, labeling, pesticide residues and contractual disputes, emphasizing that careful preparation and quality control can be critical to avoiding delays and losses.

The commodity sessions showed how these broader pressures are playing out across individual markets. Australia is heading toward a potentially strong lentil crop while farmers weigh storage against weak prices; Kazakhstan is supplying China with competitively priced green lentils and challenging established origins; Pakistan remains dependent on chickpea imports; and China’s expanding chickpea market is moving beyond traditional uses into snacks, foodservice and emerging protein and fiber applications. Across the bean, dry pea and mung bean discussions, supply, quality, relative prices and changing trade flows were equally important in determining market direction.

Technology offered another route to value creation. Huawei Yin of Yantai T. Full Biotech outlined how peas, mung beans, faba beans, chickpeas and lentils can be processed into proteins, starches, dietary fiber and other functional ingredients, reflecting the broader shift from trading raw commodities to developing specialized applications. His focus on deeper processing and whole-crop utilization also showed how advances in food technology can create additional value from established pulse raw materials.

Taken together, the Qingdao discussions showed a global pulse trade being reshaped not by one single market force, but by the interaction of supply, price, logistics, regulation, processing and changing consumer demand. China remains central to that picture, but the congress also made clear that success in the next phase of pulse trade will depend on how effectively companies understand individual markets, manage risk and turn changing demand into commercially viable trade.

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