Vietnam pips India again in pepper mart

Vietnam has retained its position as the world's largest pepper exporter in the first seven months of the current calendar year, pushing India "� the bastion of pepper production and exports just a few years ago "� further down in the export market.

Vietnam, during January-July 2006, registered a robust 36.9 per cent growth in quantity and 44.3 per cent jump in value of pepper exports compared with the first seven months of 2005.

The country exported a total of 89,000 tonne pepper worth Rs 606.30 crore during the period. In comparison, during the same period, India exported 8,056 tonne valued at Rs 64.48 crore, according to export industry estimates.

Indian contribution, in terms of export quantum, was not even 10 per cent of Vietnam's and was slightly over 10 per cent than the latter's in terms of value.

Further, notably, a chunk of Indian exports was re-export of value-added products made out of pepper imported from Vietnam and Sri Lanka.

In July alone, Vietnam exported 11,727 tonne (10,472 tonne black pepper), which was almost eight times the quantity India exported in the same month "� 1,500 tonne (provisional).

Moreover, India, despite boasting a history of over 1,000 years of pepper exports, currently contributes a paltry 7-8 per cent to the total global exports, while Vietnam's share in it jumped to 44.5 per cent in the period under consideration.

According to Vietnam Pepper Association, the surge in the country's export numbers was mainly driven by two factors "� a larger volume of processed pepper and higher global prices.

While Vietnam is in a position to produce and export pepper at much lower prices compared with India, and also, its quality has become acceptable to global buyers, the once-famous Indian black pepper on Monday stands out-priced and with no buying support.

With international buyers becoming more quality-conscious and lesser emphasis on origins, Indian exporters are finding the going tough.

Industry experts feel that domestic growers and traders must take cognisance of the emerging trend and also the government must formulate the right policy to boost exports.