Pepper price may rise due to drop in its yield

There is a possibility of a rise in pepper prices due to a dropping pepper yield because of heavy rains and rising chemical fertilizer prices, said U Hla Han, the owner of a pepper broker from deltaic area at the Bayintnaung Market.
Earlier this year, it was planted as a summer crop in the Ayeyawady delta region, and pepper growers and traders in the region say that due to heavy rains and rising oil prices, yields could be reduced by about half. In previous years, farmers had to buy fertilizers on credit, but this year only about 10 per cent of farmers have to buy it on the spot, facing insufficient fertilizer in pepper fields.
The price of fertilizer used to be 40,000 kyats per bag and the price of diesel was 200,000 kyats per barrel before. This year, the prices have risen to 90,000 kyats per a bag of fertilizer and 500,000 kyats per barrel of diesel.
“In previous year, there were imports of pepper from India; This year, there is not much to enter since the price has gone up abroad; We are stocking as must of the local pepper as we can make a profit with the money we have,” said a businessperson from the brokerage.
Locally grown peppers are stored in cold storage facilities in some industrial zones with the fees 75 kyats per viss per month. The quality of the peppers kept in there are much better compared to those stored outside, said Daw Aye, a pepper buyer.
The price of pepper may be higher than the current price due to the declining demand of pepper and the consumption of pepper by consumers, and the rising local pepper prices, according to the pepper business owners in Bayintnaung market. As the prices are likely to improve, the pepper stockholders are reportedly expecting economic benefits.
Compared to the same period last year, this year’s price is about double that of last year, according to commodity prices.—TWA/GNLM