India’s pepper production from 2024 to 25 will likely be lower in bad weather that will affect the region’s decline and production. According to the government’s initial advance estimate, pepper production could be 38% lower at 78,000 tons, compared to 1,26,000 tons a year ago. The government estimates that this year’s hectare of Rs 313,000,000 hectare is low in pepper planting area at 255,000 hectare.
Pepper prices exceed 700 pounds per kg in major production conditions such as Karnataka and Kerala.
Kishore Shamji, director of the Indian Pepper and Spice Industry Association, said that the crop is estimated to be around 75,000 tonnes as climate change has affected agriculture. The Agriculture Sector and the Spice Committee have notified about 50,000 tonnes of carryover stock, which together puts the availability of 125,000 tonnes of pepper in the domestic market, Shamji said.
GST exemption
Pepper prices have recently witnessed a slight increase in terminal markets in Kochi. They hover at 685 kg for the Gardo-free man and 705 lbs for the garde variety.
Shamji attributed the reason for the surge in pepper prices to the Treasury Ministry nods of pepper producers, farmers, growers and planters who exempt GST if agricultural traded interstates are being sent to the North Indian consumer market. Shamji said this has become possible following the intervention of Karnataka MPs who submitted their representation to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on behalf of the Pepper Agricultural Community for a proper exemption from GST.
Following this, Karnataka pepper prices have skyrocketed to £725, which also affected the price of the Kerala market, Shamji said. Farmers in Tamil Nadu and Andhra are also reportedly looking to benefit from this exemption from GST.
Shamji said prices could rise further if demand continues after Hori.
Harvest the off-off year
Pradeep Poooviah, a consortium member of the Pepper Growers Organization, said Pepper is a biennial crop, and this year is a holiday year for crops, and it’s down in all producer countries. Last year’s drought also affected crops, which is down about 40%, Puvia said.
He said Sri Lanka, which last year exported a record amount of around 20,000 tonnes to India, is unlikely to maintain this year’s trend as crops are declining in its neighboring countries.
Prakash Namboodiri, Associated BU Director at Ab Mauri, said this year that global pepper production is expected to be slightly lower than 4,80,000 tonnes than 4,84,000 tonnes a year ago. Vietnam accounts for about 38-40% of the world’s production, with Brazil explaining it at 14-15% and India and Indonesia at 11-12% respectively.
Brazil output
In Vietnam, the largest producer, production is expected to be lower from 1,83,000 tonnes to 1,80,000 tonnes, while in India, production is expected to be lower from 55,000 to 57,000 tonnes to around 50,000 to 52,000 tonnes. In Brazil, production has increased from 70,000 tonnes to 82,000 tonnes to 85,000 tonnes. In India, crops have fallen by about 20-25%, Sri Lanka has fallen by 25-30%, and Indonesia has fallen by about 8-10%, he said.
Stocks and utilization have consistently declined, with prices skyrocketing last year, with low bandwidth stocks in Vietnam, Brazil and other countries. Demand from China fell sharply last year (down about 75-80%). China’s entry into the market can boost international markets, Nambudili added.
The current fear of tariffs helps create volatility in currency charges, freight charges and prices as well.
