Mumbai (PTI): Unfavourable weather conditions have hit the production of jeera, turmeric and pepper this year, an industry analyst said.
"The production of jeera crop is likely to decline by 20-25 per cent this year due to unfavourable weather in the cultivating areas of Gujarat. Turmeric production for the coming season is also expected to be lower at 40-million bags," National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) Economist, Shraddha Umarji, said in its spices report.
The output of jeera in the country is likely to be around 14-15-lakh bags. The new crop will arrive in the markets from February. The India jeera crop will be earliest available to meet world demand as produce from other major producers, Syria and Turkey, will arrive by July and August, Umarji said.
According to the Spice Board of India, jeera exports increased by 51 per cent to 28,500-tonnes owing to crop failure in Syria, Turkey and Iran for April-December 2008.
Turmeric production for the coming season is also expected to be lower at 4-million bags against 4.5-million bags last year owing to bad weather conditions and shift in acreage to more remunerative crops according to market sources, Umarji said.
Carry-over stocks for 2009 are seen at 5,00,000 bags against 1.2-million bags last year due to lower output in 2008. According to the Spices Board of India, turmeric exports from India rose 10 per cent to 40,000 tonnes during the period April to December.
This year,chilli output is also likely to squeeze to 110-115-lakh bags as acreage had declined by 25-30 per cent, Umarji said.
The harvest season of chilli begins in January and continues till April. A prominent chilli-growing region of India, Andhra Pradesh, had produced 150-160-lakh bags (1 bag=40 kg) of red chilli last year.
According to Board, chilli exports fell 5.85 per cent to 1,41,000-tonnes for the period April-December. However, the coming months may witness export demand from Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Sri Lanka.
The domestic output of the pepper crop in the year 2008-09 is likely to stand around 45,000-47,000-tonnes. The harvest season of pepper begins in December and continues till February.
According to market sources, domestic output of the crop in the year 2008-09 is likely to stand at around 45,000-47,000 tonnes. Kerala is expected to produce 25,000 tonnes of pepper and Karnataka is likely to contribute 20,000 tonnes.
Tamil Nadu is likely to produce 2,000 tonnes. Pepper output in Kerala is likely to decline owing to bad weather conditions. On the demand side, domestic demand remained high during the month due to the winter season.
On the global front, Vietnam markets were closed owing to the lunar New Year, Umarji said.
According to the Spice Board of India, pepper exports fell by 31 percent to 19,100 tonnes for the period April to December, 2008, owing to the global financial crisis.
Source : The Hindu