Australia's Mung Bean production peaked at 150,000 metric tons of production before the drought hit. It is an important crop for export and the domestic market is growing.
Around the world Mung beans are known by different names: moong, maash and gram are the most common terms and will often be used in ethnic dishes.
Large shiny green
When most Australians think of Mung Beans they think of a large round shiny green seed with a small white sliver of colour.
To simplify life we refer to this Mung Bean - Culinary on our product list. It reality it could be Jade, Crystal, Opal and sometimes even the Berken variety. Consumers would have a very hard time picking the difference.
Small shiny green
Sometimes customers require a smaller mung bean which has a faster cooking time and whilst a smaller market, this is still in regular use in Australia and overseas. This is most often called the Celera type in Australia, but can be the Green Diamond variety.
Black
Falling under the mung bean family, but which is actually a relative of the green mung bean, the Vigna Mungo is often called black gram. In Australia the most common variety is the Regur, however in recent years the Onyx-AU variety is also being grown.
Sprouting
There is also a market for product that can be used for sprouting. Most often this will be the Berken variety, but can also be the Jade. If selling a sprouting product additional microbiological tests are required in Australia in order to sell the product.
As always, Pulse Australia has a nice visual of the different ranges as a guide.
