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Can Sri Lanka’s pepper preserve prime position amid price hikes?

13 Feb 2022

By Yakuta Dawood  Sri Lankan pepper prices are higher in the export market in comparison to its international competitors due to the high levels of the bioactive component piperine in the local product – an alkaloid that gives our black pepper (Piper nigrum) its pungency and superior quality.  However, given the current local and global concerns such as high production cost, high labour cost, increased freight cost, and much more, pepper prices have significantly doubled since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.  Thus, a question now arises whether Sri Lanka’s pepper will be able to preserve its prime position in the world export market or lose it to regional competitors due to the ongoing unprecedented crisis.  The Spice Council of Sri Lanka Chairman D.A. Perera told The Sunday Morning Business that current pepper prices had exponentially increased, with a kilo of pepper which was earlier sold at Rs. 450 now going at Rs. 1,250 per kilo in the world market. Outlining the primary reason behind this price hike, he said that three years ago, global production was at 450,000 metric tonnes and the price at which it was sold stood at $ 10. According to him, during this time, there was a tremendous surge in the aggregate demand for pepper, thereby making Sri Lankan pepper a scarce ingredient in the market.  Subsequently, to meet the increased demand, countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Brazil had scaled up their production output up to 650,000 metric tonnes, resulting in the prices falling to $ 3 and $ 3.5 in the global market, Perera noted.  Meanwhile, during this time, the Sri Lankan pepper industry faced a major downfall due to the unexpected weather conditions that resulted in a substantial drop in the total production yield, thereby resulting in an increase in prices of Sri Lankan pepper due to the factors affecting supply, which in turn affect the pricing mechanism.  According to official statistics published by Minh-Ngoc Nguyen – a researcher for the Southeast Asian region – the total volume of pepper produced in Vietnam in 2021 exceeded 280,000 metric tonnes, indicating a noticeable increase from just over 270,000 metric tonnes in 2020.  However, what is noteworthy to mention is that regardless of the quantity of pepper produced by Sri Lanka, the quality of the pepper is extremely superior when compared to the existing large-scale competitors in the market.  Meanwhile, Department of Export Agriculture Director (Development) L.M.J.K. Lindara stated that presently the price per kilo sold from Sri Lanka was about $ 6 to $ 7 whereas Vietnam was selling at $ 4 to $ 5 to its suppliers.  “Regardless of our pricing, Sri Lankan pepper possesses the highest quality of piperine in comparison to Vietnam, India, etc., therefore the demand is set to further rise in the future even if the cost of larger producers is lower than ours,” Lindara shared.  Pepper exports Unfortunately, the production target set for this year is not expected to exceed the target set for 2021 as the pepper industry will not be capable of supplying to its maximum capacity due to setbacks caused by unexpected weather conditions in 2021.  Commenting in this regard, Lindara stated that despite Sri Lanka achieving the target of 25,000 metric tonnes of pepper production in 2021, the industry would be only capable of producing 20,000 metric tonnes or less in 2022.  “According to export data, we have already exported 17,959 metric tonnes to the international market in 2021 but it will be difficult this year because a high level of rain is estimated for 2022. Pepper cultivation needs a dry season but we didn’t have this in August, September, and October last year,” he commented.  Echoing his sentiments, Spice Council Chairman Perera stated that the department was expecting about 50% of what was achieved in 2021 as it was extremely hard to secure the expected pepper production during the heavy rainy season. Nevertheless, Perara noted that prices could further rise in the upcoming months as the impact of weather conditions could result in pepper availability being scarce, leading to a higher cost of Rs. 1,300-1,350 in local and global markets.  According to the latest statistics he had received, Perera mentioned that despite the price hike, the demand for Sri Lankan pepper was very high from India, recording 6,000 metric tonnes in the last two months.  India imported 54% of Sri Lanka’s pepper production in 2015 and then further increased imports to reach 61% and 84% in 2016 and 2017, respectively. Accordingly, in 2016, Sri Lanka’s pepper exports to India were around 5,000 MT, which increased to over 10,000 MT in 2016 and 2017. In 2021, the total export of black pepper to India during January-November was 8,961 tonnes – more than double the 4,017 tonnes a year earlier. During the same period in 2019, it was 3,144 tonnes. Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, the Managing Director of a leading spice exporting firm in Sri Lanka who wished to remain anonymous stated that the cost of production had significantly increased due to the fuel shortage, increased labour cost, etc. in the past few months along with the increased freight cost too which was impacting prices. However, the official noted that demand had risen and would continue to rise in the future. “The demand has increased particularly in Australia and India along with four to five other countries. In future, the cost will increase and the demand will also simultaneously increase.” The official also revealed that Sri Lanka would face a shortage of pepper supply in the next season due to issues relating to fertiliser, along with unsuitable climatic conditions.  Further, another official operating in Sri Lanka, who wished to remain unidentified, stated that the present Covid-19 situation was impacting the sales of the company.  The official stated that even though there was high demand in the global market for pepper, countries like Vietnam had a very low cost of production, thus making its prices far lower compared to Sri Lankan pepper.  “This makes it very hard for us to compete, but we have a different niche market given our taste and quality. There is a certain limit the Government can intervene in the global market; however, it is important for them to support local suppliers by fast-tracking the approval of regulation processes,” the official stressed.  Expansion plans Sri Lankan pepper is currently being cultivated in over 30,000 hectares of land in the country, particularly in low and mid regions with a cooler climate, including Matale, Kandy, Kurunegala, Monaragala, Badulla, Kegalle, and Ratnapura. Following India, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Brazil, Sri Lanka holds fifth place in global pepper cultivation. With its unique features, Sri Lankan pepper caters to 3% of the global demand with over 80% of exports being sent to India, the largest importer of Sri Lankan pepper to date. Speaking on initiatives by the Department of Export Agriculture, Lindara stated that the department was in process of investing approximately Rs. 250 million to expand pepper cultivation in non-traditional areas in Sri Lanka. “Pepper is generally cultivated in mid-control country areas as a dry zone is required. Now we are growing it in Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, and Ampara as these locations have a lot of land,” he revealed.  The department has also initiated the ‘Productivity Development Program of Pepper Cultivation,’ which aims to increase productivity of the pepper industry. Elaborating, Lindara stated that through this initiative, the department was aiming to increase production to 1,500-kilograms per hectare in comparison to the present value of 760 kilos per hectare. To achieve this goal, the department is currently working towards encouraging farmers to implement certain practises correctly. “We are planning to give a subsidiary to farmers with an aim of improving the productivity of their lands,” Lindara said.  The department is also in the process of obtaining the required safety certification in line with requirements of the European Union market, America, the Middle East, and Japan. “We have invested more than Rs. 20 million to obtain the certificate. If we get this we can export our pepper into high-income-based countries, even though Sri Lanka exports more than 75% of its pepper production to India,” Lindara shared. He further affirmed that regardless of any challenge posed by its competitors, Sri Lankan pepper would always be the “best quality spice ingredient” for its consumers across the globe. 


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