Pepper prices reached their highest level in 8 years

In Ba Ria-Vung Tau, pepper prices have reached 120,000 VND per kg. Similarly, pepper prices in Dak Lak, Gia Lai, and Binh Phuoc have also increased to VND 119,000 per kg.

Mrs. Oanh, in Gia Lai, said that this crop harvested about two quintals of pepper. With a price of VND 119,000 per kg, her family earned nearly VND 24 million in this case. "Many years ago, pepper prices continued to plummet, so I halved the area down to more than 100 pepper pillars," Ms. Oanh said.

It is also the story of many pepper-growing households this year, causing supply to decrease.

Mrs. Thanh Mai, a pepper buyer in the Central Highlands, said that the intense heat over the past few months has caused pepper productivity among people to decrease by more than 30%.

Besides, in the years 2018-2020, there were times when pepper prices plummeted to VND 35,000 - 40,000 per kg, and many perennial gardens were cut down and planted with durian and some other plants with higher economic value.

"This causes supply to decrease compared to last year and previous years, pushing pepper prices up," she explained.

Sharing the same opinion, Mrs. Hoang Thi Lien, President of the Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association (VPSA), said that pepper reserves have been low recently. Vietnam, Indonesia, and Brazil are all forecast to reduce crop output because of the impact of El Nino.

Meanwhile, in addition to the US, Pakistan, Germany, Korea, and India increased their purchases of pepper from Vietnam by double digits, pushing demand up and prices continuously going up.

In addition to the above factors, according to export businesses, the shortage of empty containers has also caused sea freight rates to increase by an average of about 30% in recent weeks, causing pepper prices to incur additional costs.

Therefore, the VPSA recommends that export businesses be careful in purchasing and exporting activities to avoid risks similar to recent coffee or rice prices.

Vietnam's pepper industry accounts for 40% of output and 60% of the world market share. According to the VPSA, the global pepper market is worth about USD 5.4 billion. It is forecast to reach an average growth rate of about 20% from 2024 to 2032.

By the end of 2023, the US was Vietnam's largest customer, accounting for 23.5% of the total export value of this product. Ranked second is China, accounting for 14.1%, followed by India and Germany, accounting for 5.4% and 4.3% of the total pepper export value, respectively.