Lentils

Lentils trade as two commercially distinct streams. Red lentils are grown for dehulling and splitting: the buyer is paying for a clean split with minimal broken and powder, because the product is going into dal, soups and ready meals where cooking time and colour matter more than seed size. Green lentils are usually sold whole with the seed coat intact, and here size class drives the price — the large-seeded types command a premium in markets that use them as a plate presence rather than a purée. The three quality questions that decide acceptance are the same everywhere: foreign material and defect tolerance, moisture at loading, and colour uniformity. Moisture is the one that ruins shipments — pulses loaded near the upper limit will sweat in a container crossing the tropics and arrive with mould or caking, which is why a stated maximum moisture and a container lining specification belong in the enquiry, not in the claim afterwards. Because the same field crop can be presented as whole, split or dehulled product, tell us the finished form you need. Splitting yield and process losses are what separate two quotations that look identical on the surface.

Red lentils — whole: Seed coat on, destined for dehulling or direct cooking. Red lentils — split (football): Dehulled and split; sold on split integrity and low powder. Green lentils — large: Large-seeded class used where whole-seed appearance matters. Green lentils — small / medium: Standard sizes for canning, soups and blended packs. Specialty types: French green and beluga-type lentils are available on request against confirmed demand.

Purity — Typically 99–99.9 % depending on class and buyer standard. Moisture — Normally specified at 13–14 % maximum at loading. Defects — Agreed per contract — broken, split, discoloured and foreign material each have a stated ceiling. Sizing — Stated by class and screen size for green lentils; split integrity for red. Treatment — Cleaned, gravity separated and colour sorted; polished on request. Values vary by grade, crop year and supplier and are confirmed against supplier documentation at quotation.

Canada is one of the world's leading lentil exporting origins, with production concentrated in Saskatchewan and Alberta. The crop is harvested from late summer and moves through cleaning, colour-sorting and bagging plants across the prairies before rail movement to port. Practical consequence for buyers: availability and price are seasonal and are strongly influenced by harvest quality in a given year. Early-season enquiries are quoted against a new crop position; later in the year the conversation moves to carry-over stock, which can differ in colour even when it meets the same grade. Origin, availability, grade and certification are confirmed at quotation for the lot actually offered — origin is a supply attribute, never an assumed property of the product.

Container-load or vessel-parcel shipments, quoted on FOB, CFR or CIF terms. · Container lining and desiccant are specified in the contract, not assumed — state the destination and transit time so the right protection is priced in. · Phytosanitary requirements differ by destination; confirm your import permit conditions before contracting.

Commonly relevant documentation: Certificate of Analysis · Phytosanitary Certificate · Certificate of Origin · Weight and quality certificate by an independent surveyor (on request) · Fumigation certificate where the destination requires it. Availability is confirmed per order and per destination.