INDIA:Subdued buying dampens festive spirit in cardamom trade

 



Kochi September 22, 2020

Restrictions on weddings and public events, dwindling demand in the north Indian markets, stagnant export markets hit traders

Despite the ensuing festival season, subdued buying of cardamom from upcountry markets has pushed the trading community in a precarious situation.
“What is happening now is only minimal trade with some specific orders which is not enough to tide over the crisis triggered by the pandemic,” sources in the sector told BusinessLine. The high labour cost and shortage of migrant labour from Theni due to Covid-19 restrictions has forced growers in Idukki to depend on labour that’s available in Kerala, which has increased costs by around 30 per cent, the sources said.

“September and October are considered a good time for a demand boost for cardamom from North Indian consuming markets. But the spread of Covid-19 has hit consumption due to restrictions on weddings, events, etc. Traders are in a dilemma on the dwindling demand, coupled with a stagnant export market due to the pesticide issue in Saudi Arabia,” PC Punnoose, CEO, CPMCS Ltd, said.
The labour shortage is affecting the harvest in Idukki, where 90 per cent of the country’s cardamom is grown. The delay is impacting the quality of capsules which now looks pale yellow in colour instead of flush green. Moreover, movement restrictions on labour affected the upkeep of plantations, as 40 per cent of cardamom plantations in Idukki are owned by farmers from the neighbouring state, he said.

As cardamom plantations are labour intensive, C Sadasivasubramaniam, Secretary, Kerala Cardamom Growers Association, urged the district administration to permit workers to travel from the borders to Idukki. The major threat to plants is the Azhukal disease that requires anti-fungal treatment. “When Kerala government permits free movement of workers through other district borders, why is the district administration in Idukki so adamant in denying such benefits here?” he asked.
“Cardamom capsules has to be plucked at 40-day intervals and any delay can lead to quality reduction, breaking of capsules and less setting for future rounds,” SB Prabhakar, cardamom planter, Pambadampara Estate, said.

The reduced demand in north Indian markets is contributing to a fall in prices; it dropped to ₹1,460 per kg, half of the previous year’s average. Copious amounts of rains in September in growing areas added to the bearish sentiment, he added.

Guatemala is expecting a good crop this season due to ideal weather and the prices are hovering at around $17. As prices in India have come down, the sector could export more to the Gulf nations, including Saudi, after resolving the pending issues, he said.
The auctioneers pointed out that the market is witnessing selling pressure as farmers are liquidating their stocks at auctions fearing a further price drop.

V Sajeev Kuma for:
www.thehindubusinessline.com

# CARDAMOM INDIA - Kerala With no auction, cardamom piles up

IDUKKI, April 03, 2020 23:23 IS

 

Sector faces uncertainty as crop prices are decided at auctions

The cardamom sector is facing a deadlock in the absence of auctions, with the main buyers in Mumbai abstaining from taking new orders for nearly a month. The produce is held up with farmers and small-scale traders, K.S. Mathew, director, Vandanmedu Green Gold Cardamom Producer Co. Ltd., told The Hindu on Friday.

There are 12 auctioneers at the Spices Park at Puttady under the Spices Board of India. As per the licensing agreement, the auctioneer has to pay the farmer the price of cardamom within 10 days of the auction. The traders and industrial units that purchase the produce have to pay the auctioneer the price within 21 days. The mechanism was going on unhindered with the daily auctions, he said.

Cardamom’s price is decided at the auctions, without which there is total uncertainty. The price would be known only when the auctions restart, Mr. Mathew said.

Last price

It is estimated that the traders have to pay the auctioneers more than ₹200 crore for the last two to four consignments in the auctions. When the auctions were stopped following the COVID-19 scare the price was at ₹3,500 per kg.

Marketing sources said prices could dip as the next crop, predicted to be a bumper one, is set to arrive in the market by June/July, and a major quantity produced in the last season has remained unsold. Moreover, the crop’s export prospects will depend on the stance of Saudi Arabia, the main buyer, sources said.

No buyers

The last harvesting season witnessed the highest ever prices quoted in the auctions, reaching up to ₹9,000 per kg.

The absence of trading has affected not only the plantations but also small-scale farmers. Lalichan, a farmer in Peerumade, said there were no buyers with small-scale hill produce merchants ceasing to buy cardamom. A trader had agreed to take the produce without making payment now. A meagre price was offered.
“How can one sell the produce without knowing the price and without being paid,” he added.

Giji K. Raman for
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala

WHATSAPP +5511988027709
MAIL manager@peppertrade.com.br
TWITTER : https://twitter.com/peppertrade

#CARDAMOM - In India High-priced inventory drives cardamom prices down

High-priced inventory drives cardamom prices down
V.Sajeev Kumar Kochi | Updated on January 29, 2020 Published on January 29, 2020

High-priced inventory, both at primary trade centres and consuming markets, seemed to have a say on cardamom prices, which dropped at Puttady auctions on Wednesday.
Because of this, traders remained inactive in the two trading sessions and that impacted the prices in spite of lower arrivals. There was no active involvement of buyers. Many of them are on a wait-and-watch mode to liquidate stocks and this led to lesser sales, lean buying and higher credit cycle.

Besides, the current harvest from the plantations are of inferior quality and smaller in size at the fag end of the season. This has also added to the sentiments.


The arrivals in the two trading session was 23.6 tonnes, which realised a combined average price of ₹3,660 per kg. The upcountry buyers were not active because of the huge time gap between the two trading sessions. The morning auction was completed in one hour, forcing buyers to wait for long for commencement of the second session, traders said.

In the morning session, the auctioneers Idukki Dist Traditional Cardamom Producer Company offered 11.8 tonnes, which realised an average price of ₹3,655.21 per kg. The highest price quoted for selected lots was ₹3,898.

In the evening session, Vandanmedu Green Gold Cardamom Producer Co offered 11.8 tonnes in which 10.8 tonnes realised an average price of ₹3665.92. The highest price quoted for selected lots was ₹3,905.
Trade analysts Acumen Capital Markets said that most active cardamom March futures gained by 1.64 per cent or ₹64.5 to ₹3,989.90 when last traded on Wednesday.

REFERENCES
1 U$D =71,35 INDIAN RUPEES

WHATSAPP +5511988027709
MAIL manager@peppertrade.com.br
TWITTER : https://twitter.com/peppertrade

In India, Black pepper prices lowest in a decade

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/news/black-pepper-prices-lowest-in-a-decade/articleshow/71799047.cms

By PK Krishnakumar

Kochi: Oversupply in the global market and rising imports have pushed Indian black pepper prices to the lowest in a decade.

The prices have dipped below Rs 300 per kg. “When we take the produce to the market, we get only Rs 280 per kg,’’ said a grower, Rajendra Prasad, based in Idukki in Kerala.

When the harvest of the new crop begins in December, the prices are expected to fall further. “We will not be surprised if the prices touch Rs 200 next year,’’ Prasad said.
Burdened by high wages and declining productivity, the growers have already started moving to other crops that give better prices like cardamom.Prasad has started growing cardamom in parts of his 10-acre pepper plantation. “Against 5 kg earlier, I am getting 2 kg from a pepper vine. Though cardamom productivity will be 70 per cent of that from regular growing areas in Idukki, it offers better remuneration.’’ Cardamom is priced around Rs 2,500 per kg.

Though cardamom productivity will be 70 per cent of that from regular growing areas in Idukki, it offers better remuneration.’’ Cardamom is priced around Rs 2,500 per kg.

Read more at:
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/71799047.cms?utm_source=twitter_web&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=socialsharebuttons&utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

The black pepper production in India has been stagnating between 50,000 to 60,000 tonnes in the past few years with Karnataka being the top producer followed by Kerala. Last year, heavy rains and flood led to poor output in Kerala and parts of Karnataka.

Even at this level, Indian pepper has the highest price in the global market. Pepper from major producer like Vietnam, Brazil and Indonesia are priced in the range of Rs 150 to 160 per kg while Malaysian pepper is available for around Rs 250 per kg .

As a result, there has been rising import of pepper to India flouting the minimum import price fixed by India atRs 500 per kg.

“Lots of pepper are reaching Indian shores via Mumbai, Chennai and Tuticorin ports. It is easy for the sellers to make an invoice of Rs 500 per kg to convince the Customs here,” said Jojan Malayil, CEO of Bafna Enterprises, an exporter.
This is happening despite an import duty of over 50 per cent for Asean countries. “Till October, Vietnam has exported 2.48 lakh tonnes of which includes pepper imported by the country from Indonesia and Brazil,” Malayil said.

The International Pepper Community, the inter-governmental organisation of pepper producing countries, is likely to come out with global production estimate for 2020 next month. “It will be a surplus with good carryover from the current year which will keep the prices subdued,” said Rajiv Palicha, chairman, All India Spices Exporters Forum.




Read more at:
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/71799047.cms

Cardamom price on a record high

IDUKKI , August 05, 2019 00:17 IST

Delayed harvest leads to poor supply

Cardamom price continues to break records because of the crop’s poor availability in the market. A drop in production is predicted in the days ahead too of the current season.

Market sources said that the first crop of the season had not reached the auction centres and adverse climate had impacted the production. Usually the first crop reaches auction centres by June/July. However, because of poor southwest monsoon, the first crop is expected only by the end of August or in September this time.

The maximum price recorded at the Spices Park at Puttady on Saturday was ₹7,000 a kg while the average price was ₹4,733. It was a record in the maximum and average prices in both the auctions, held in the morning and eventing, at Spices Park.

 In the evening auction held by Header Systems (India) Ltd., Nedumkandam, on Saturday, 26,142 kg reached the auction centre, all of which was sold. The maximum and average prices respectively were ₹7,000 and ₹4,655 per kg.

In the morning auction held by Mas Enterprise, Vandanmedu, of the 8,796 kg of cardamom that had arrived, 8,741 kg was sold at ₹5,212 (maximum) and ₹4,733 per kg (average). The maximum price had remained above ₹4,000 per kg from July 24.
Flood impact

The Cardamom Hill Reserve (CHR) area received very poor rainfall and the atmospheric temperature remains high, affecting the flowering and the growth of beans. In addition, the flood of 2018 had taken a toll with plants largely destroyed in the CHR. Market sources said the high fluctuation in prices may not benefit the farmers and it is likely to drop with the arrival of the first crop.
Giji K. Raman


https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/cardamom-price-on-a-record-high/article28816195.ece
--------------------------

WHATSAPP +5511988027709
MAIL manager@peppertrade.com.br

Prices of cardamom -India

Prices of cardamom, Queen of Spices, soar as wild weather wipes Indian production

Sudarshan Varadhan

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Every year, tens of millions of Hindus flock to the Venkateswara Temple in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh to pay tribute to site’s patron deity and pick up some of its famous sweets, the legendary “Tirupati laddu”.
The traditional delicacy is baked with sugar, flour, ghee, nuts and raisins and studded with cardamom, which has surged in price this year as India’s erratic weather ravages production of the pod, known as “the Queen of Spices”.

That spike has created new cost and supply pressures for buyers of the spice, like the temple, which offers a limited number of complimentary laddus to visitors and charges for extras.

“We are already incurring a loss making laddus, and this makes it worse,” a senior temple official told Reuters.

The temple typically buys 120 tonnes a year of high quality small cardamom pods, the most sought after kind, to meet demand. A year ago, it paid 1,600 rupees ($23.31) per kg for the spice, the official said. This month, it paid 4,400 rupees per kg.
The production problems stem from erratic weather in the south Indian district of Idukki, which accounts for at least a sixth of the global production and about three-quarters of India’s small cardamom output.

Last year, massive rains killed over 50 people and destroyed the district’s farmlands. This year, a weak monsoon season has wiped small cardamom production, threatening the livelihoods of thousands of producers.

That has hit both supply and quality, but more crucially, sent the spot prices of small cardamom, already among the world’s priciest spices, to record highs on Mumbai’s Multi Commodity Exchange this month.

That spike is good news for traders but depleted stocks mean farmers are unable to capitalize on the rally, while the surge in costs has also hurt downstream demand.

Temples and state governments are among India’s largest buyers of cardamom, accounting for up to 35% of the market, said Jojo George, Managing Director of KCPMC.
“Somebody who was buying three tonnes or so earlier is now buying only one ton,” George said.

‘MAD CHEF’

Cardamom’s complex combination of flavors, including elements of mint, citrus and herbs, make it a popular ingredient in a wide range of dishes, both sweet and savory.

Koushik S., popularly known as the “Mad Chef”, said the spice is essential to Indian cooking and supply issues affect his work.

“Next year, availability will be a problem and we might have to import from Guatemala, but then the quality is inferior,” said Koushik, who is a well-known Indian TV chef and is also a consultant to restaurant chains.

Guatemala is the largest cardamom grower but supply to India from the Central American country is mixed with lower quality cardamom, according to research by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency.

Over the past three months, N Seetharam Prasad, the chef at the four-star GRT hotel in Chennai, has complained five times about the low quality of his small cardamom supplies.

He uses the spice to make everything from biryani, a fragrant rice dish that enjoys a cult status in the country, to tea and sweets.

“I will never compromise on the quality of ingredients and will look to buy elsewhere if I don’t get good cardamom,” Prasad told Reuters.

Idukki, a small land-locked mountainous region located near the southern tip of India, has historically been ideal for cardamom, which demands heavy rains to thrive.

 P.C. Matthew, a farmer who lives in India’s cardamom capital of Vandanmedu in Idukki, expects production to fall 50% from a normal year due to lower rainfall, and for the harvest to be delayed to October from early August.
While overall rainfall at local and national levels has not varied significantly over time, analysis shows the incidence of short spells of intense rain and lengthy periods of little or no rain has increased.

India, in its annual economic survey last year, attributed this to climate change, and said revenue in areas entirely dependent on rains could fall by close to a sixth.

The increasingly erratic weather patterns lift risks for the $400 billion farm economy and its hundreds of millions of farmers, only a small fraction of whom have crop insurance
Since the start of the century, Idukki’s cardamom regions have had seven lengthy dry spells, defined as periods of 100 days or more of no rain, said Muthusamy Murugan, the officer in charge of the state-run Cardamom Research Station in the district.

That compares with 15 such spells for the entire 20th century. He expects the region’s cardamom production to fall 40%.

“Prices will continue to rise in the long-term and we have reached this point because of climate change,” said Joychan Kannamunda, secretary of the Cardamom Growers Association.
--------------------
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-water-cardamom/prices-of-cardamom-queen-of-spices-soar-as-wild-weather-wipes-indian-production-idUSKCN1UC087

Reference: Today, 1 USD = 68.7891 INR


WHATSAPP +5511988027709
MAIL manager@peppertrade.com.br