Global pepper production is under stress due to changing weather and competition from alternate cash crops, trade sources said. Production has more or less stagnated in the last five years after touching a record high?of 3, 50,000 tonne during 2005, according to a presentation made by pepper trader Harris Freeman and Company at the recently concluded World Spice Congress.
Environmental changes have been the most disruptive factor in pepper production in most of the producing nations, P Nandakumar, a trade consultant from Kochi, told FE. Changes in the El Nino conditions could lead to reduced rainfall in most areas of southeast Asia, affecting pepper yield.
The report by Harris Freeman also points out that increased restrictions on clearing of Amazon forests in Brazil will affect availability of new areas for cultivation. Restrictions have also been placed on percentage of private land that can be used for non-forestry purposes.
Production in India is seen directly correlated to the onset, pattern and intensity of monsoon rains. According to MS Swaminathan Commission, which studied the farm crisis in Idukki district of Kerala, environmental factors have changed dramatically and could threaten the livelihood of millions of farmers.?The commission reports that top soil of the region has been destroyed and is not suitable for farming.?The use of pesticides and fertilisers has contributed significantly to the degradation of the environment.
India, Vietnam and Brazil are also plagued by the rising input costs of labor and fertilisers, says the study by Harris Freeman. Higher market prices for alternate cash crops like cocoa, coffee and rubber have also affected production of pepper. Cocoa prices are at the highest level in last thirty years. Coffee futures is more transparent when compared to pepper and brings in better returns, Nandakumar said.
Farmers in Lampung (Indonesia) have increased planting of oil palm, cocoa and coffee. White pepper production in Bangka (Indonesia) has decreased due to tin mining as well as decorticated white pepper competition from Vietnam.
Labour shortage is a major problem plaguing nations like India. ?Declining productivity and diseases have damaged most of the vines in south India and for many farmers harvesting of the crop with hired labor is loss making.?The vines are unattended and neglected,? a scientist at the Indian Institute of Spices Research said.
High volatility of the Indian futures market, inflation, and fluctuations of major currencies are also contributing to the declining fortunes of pepper farming.
?Vietnam is the only country that shows promise of increased production, but an important criterion would be the price of pepper. If price falls below a certain level, farmers would switch over to other crops,? Nandakumar said. Positive signs are also emerging from Cambodia and Laos, who are turning to pepper farming . Most of the pepper produced in these two nations are traded through Vietnam, he added.