India plans to double pepper output in 5 years
Sunday, 20 June 2010
India plans to double its annual pepper production from 50,000 tonnes to 0.1 million tonnes for which a massive replantation excercise costing Rs 2.30 billion is being implemented in the country, VJ Kurien, Chairman, Spices Board said.
Of the total outlay, Rs 1.20 billion is being spent in Idukki district in Kerala while Rs 480 million is being allocated in Wayanad while Rs 50 million is being utilised to improve production in Tripura, Assam and Meghalaya and other north-eastern regions.
India's pepper production has become stagnant at 50,000 tonnes due to predominance of old and senile pepper plantations, incidence of diseases and farmers moving away to other crops due to low productivity in pepper. Farmers have welcomed the replantation scheme under National Horticultural Mission and this will lead to increased output with in 3-4 years, Kurien said.
India's pepper exports have declined 22 per cent in volume and 24 per cent in value in 2009-10- 19,750 tonnes of pepper valued at Rs 3.13 billion was exported as against 25, 250 tonnes valued at Rs 4.13 billion last year.
Export of pepper to major destinations like USA and EU have declined as US export firms are keeping low inventories which resulted in low volume of imports.
USA continued as our major market for pepper and has imported 8525 metric tonnes, amounting for 43 per cent of our total export of pepper. The other major buyers are UK (1600 metric tonnes), Canada (895 mt), Germany (880 mt), Italy (835 mt) and Japan (600 mt).
---(Commodity Online)
Of the total outlay, Rs 1.20 billion is being spent in Idukki district in Kerala while Rs 480 million is being allocated in Wayanad while Rs 50 million is being utilised to improve production in Tripura, Assam and Meghalaya and other north-eastern regions.
India's pepper production has become stagnant at 50,000 tonnes due to predominance of old and senile pepper plantations, incidence of diseases and farmers moving away to other crops due to low productivity in pepper. Farmers have welcomed the replantation scheme under National Horticultural Mission and this will lead to increased output with in 3-4 years, Kurien said.
India's pepper exports have declined 22 per cent in volume and 24 per cent in value in 2009-10- 19,750 tonnes of pepper valued at Rs 3.13 billion was exported as against 25, 250 tonnes valued at Rs 4.13 billion last year.
Export of pepper to major destinations like USA and EU have declined as US export firms are keeping low inventories which resulted in low volume of imports.
USA continued as our major market for pepper and has imported 8525 metric tonnes, amounting for 43 per cent of our total export of pepper. The other major buyers are UK (1600 metric tonnes), Canada (895 mt), Germany (880 mt), Italy (835 mt) and Japan (600 mt).
---(Commodity Online)