Indian pepper growers expect production to increase in the 2019-2020 crop despite the changing weather, with production expected to reach 50,000 to 55,000 tons.
“We are expecting a good crop in 2019-2020 with more than 60,000 tons based on the phenomenal growth in November and December of last year.
However, drought in March and April followed by heavy rains and floods hindered production, ”said Kishore Shamji of Kishor Spices, a Kochi-based company.
He predicted the output pepper in the 2019-2020 crop year, it may reach 50,000 – 55,000 tons, nearly the same as the previous crop, but higher than the International Pepper Community's forecast of 47,000 tons.
Mr. KK Vishwanath, coordinator of the Black Pepper Growers Association, responded to the sheet Hindu BusinessLine that the final production for the 2019-2020 crop will be made when the Spices Council of India and all stakeholders take place.
Production is likely to remain unchanged from the previous crop but there will be a price change, KK Vishwanath said.
Some official sources said that the Spices Council is waiting for forecasting data for the 2019-2020 season from the General Department of Spice Development (DASD) and that the report will be made before a meeting scheduled to be held. held in late October or early November.
In the 2018-2019 crop, according to DASD data, black pepper production reached about 62,400 tons spread over 138,000 hectares.
Rajiv Palicha, president of the All India Spices Exporters Forum, said total production in the domestic market this year could be lower due to the erratic changes of weather, which could range from 52,000. – 55,000 tons.
According to Mr. Shamji, pepper production in Kerala and Karnataka last year had difficulties due to heavy rain, floods and landslides.
Domestic prices for Indian pepper were likely to fall
Pepper prices India is currently fluctuating between 300-325 rupees / kg, while the price in Sri Lanka is about 200 rupees / kg (equivalent to 2,800 USD / ton). This has forced exporters to pay attention to imported goods instead of depending on the domestic market.
Citing August 2019 figures, Mr. Shamji said India was the second largest importer of Vietnamese pepper after the US, with 16,600 tons while the US was 35,000 tons.
If he continues to import Sri Lankan pepper without any restrictions imposed by the government, Mr. Shamji predicts that the price of Indian pepper will fall to 250 rupees per kg.
Even the minimum import price of 500 rupees / kg set by the Indian government to limit smuggled imports and save for domestic pepper growers did not bring the desired results.
The reason is that a large amount of Vietnamese black pepper shipped via Sri Lanka through the South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) continues to the Indian coast, Shamji said.
