The important imports of black pepper have evoked a call from merchants to take measures, including the revocation of tax concessions and set a minimum import price for the spice to protect national producers.
Aswath Balaji, director of Operations of Hectar Global, an agro-commercio startup based in Chennai, said that Pepper’s imports to India of Sri Lanka and Vietnam have been increasing, results for harvest in the domestic market.
He pointed out that Sri Lanka’s pepper shipments were cleaning the Indian ports for less than ₹ 650/kg and sold for around ₹ 675, while comparable indian glads grades were still ordered around ₹ 700, also after a week of slides of 5 percent. Masala manufacturers are taking these cheapest imports, while other buyers remain on the sidelines, waiting for more decreases, he said.
Fixed mip
The new Sri Lanka harvest, which is due to June, will add more downward pressure, especially with the FTA Indando Sri Lanka that allows the first 2,500 tons free of taxes and charging only 8 percent beyond that, according to costs.
Balaji urged the government to consider re -negotiating free trade agreements with Sri Lanka, South Asia and Asean countries; Fix a minimum import price above the domestic market rates; Strengthen monitoring mechanisms to guarantee fair trade practices; Improve access to the market for Indian pepper in global markets and provide incentives for high quality national production.
Greater production and productivity through the adoption of practices of scientific cultivation, improving the quality, the reduction of the input costs and the value of the value of the promotion, such as the extraction of oilsets, will help measures, said
In the export counter, he said that Indian Pepper is cited at approximately $ 8,650/ ton, a clear cousin for Sri Lanka ($ 7,200), Vietnam ($ 7,100), Brazil ($ 7000) and Indonesia ($ 7,500). Sri Lanka imports have already reached 24,000 tons in 2024-25, compared to 14,000 tons last season, while India’s own harvest is reduced to 75,000 tons of 126,000 tons. In this context, any rally in national prices is likely to be limited to the policy actions or currency movements change the equation, Balaji said.
Exports
In 2025–26, the production was projected in 76,000 tons, below 126,000 tons in 2024–25. According to reports, production has also affected the leg in Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
The annual demand for pepper of India is estimated at around 60,000 tons and continues to grow, driven by greater awareness of health, culinary use and medicinal applications. A drag stock of around 50,000 tons is expected to relieve supply pressures. This surplus also allows India to export continuous pepper. From April to February 2024–25, India exported more than 19,000 tons for a value of $ 80.23 million, an increase of 18 percent in volume and 40 percent in value during the previous year.
Posted on May 19, 2025