July 20, 2026
Tanzania's pulses trade is heading into its 2026 harvest later — and in some cases lighter — than usual, according to Samir Esmail, Director at Afrisian Ginning. He discusses the season's progress, the evolving Tanzania Mercantile Exchange (TMX), and the knock-on effects of Gulf shipping disruption on the country's mung bean trade.
Mung bean is the one crop already off the field this year, and Esmail describes it as a smaller harvest than 2025's. "It's a combination of lower prices and bad weather," he says, putting this year's crop at approximately 20,000 tons, against roughly 30,000 tons last year — figures he notes are preliminary, pending exact data. The majority of the crop is exported, though some volume moves informally across the border into Kenya and goes unrecorded. All formal mung bean sales, he confirms, now go through TMX.
Chickpeas and pigeon peas have yet to begin, with one exception: Bariadi, an early-maturing pigeon pea variety that typically reaches the market first, has started coming in at a modest 5,000–7,000 tons. Everything else is running later than normal, with Samir expecting the broader harvest to begin around mid-August. Forward booking is limited to informal reservations by exporters, since actual export volumes can only be confirmed once product has cleared through TMX auctions — spot-based by design, with no formal forward market.
READ THE FULL ARTICLETanzania's 2026 mung bean harvest is estimated at around 20,000 tons, down from roughly 30,000 tons last year, following weaker prices and unfavorable weather. The crop is the first major pulse harvest of the season, with most production destined for export.
With Jebel Ali operations disrupted, Tanzania's mung bean cargo has shifted through alternative routes, pushing freight rates from around $500–700 to $3,500–3,700 per container and contributing to an estimated 90% decline in export volumes.
Tanzania / East Africa / pulse trade / global pulse markets / agricultural exports / Gulf logistics
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