Queensland to develop new chickpeas variety for India
New varieties are more drought tolerant and disease resistant,says university.
Queensland could emerge as Australia’s leading producer and exporter of chickpeas following a research grant of 4.8 million announced in this year’s state budget for its university.
The research would focus on developing chickpeas varieties for the Indian market.
The grant will enable researchers at Centre for Tropical Crops and Biocommodities at the Queensland University of Technology QUT to develop new varieties of chickpeas and other pulses that are more drought tolerant and disease resistant,the university said.
Centre for Tropical Crops and Biocommodities Deputy Director Sagadevan Mundree said the research would focus on chickpea varieties that are specifically targeted at the Indian market.
Queensland produces one-quarter of Australia’s 500,000 tonne annual chickpea output and the bulk of the crop is exported to India,he said.
The world produces about 60 million tonnes of pulses per year and while India,the world’s largest producer,consumes 35 per cent of this,it imports approximately five million tonnes of pulses per annum, he added.
The world has an almost insatiable appetite for pulses such as chickpeas. Pulses are an important source of protein and as the world’s population increases the current dependence on animal protein is simply not sustainable,Mundree added.
Chickpeas and other pulses will fill the gap and thanks to this state government grant,Queensland has an opportunity to develop this industry and to reap the rewards in the future, he added.
Our research should enable existing growers on more marginal land to expand into chickpea and other tropical pulse production, Mundree said.
He said the research would use biotechnology to genetically improve chickpea resistance to drought and salinity as well as to pests such as weevils and diseases,including viruses.
The Centre for Tropical Crops and Biocommodities’ track record of working with industries such as the sugar and banana industries in Queensland and globally has led to significant outcomes for these industries.
We are well on the way to introducing vitamin A rich bananas into Ugandan agriculture,a project which is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation,and expect within the next few years to have iron-rich banana plants ready for production in India, he said.
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