According to Le Van Duc, Deputy Director of the Crop Production Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), as world market demand for pepper began to rise at the beginning of the decade, pepper production in Vietnam started growing at an alarming rate. He now predicts that “the bubble is about to burst”. A farmer rakes newly harvested pepper in Southern Binh Phuoc province. The total production area has increased threefold between 2010 and 2017. Vietnam is now the world leader in pepper production. It exports to 109 countries and territories, mainly to Europe, Asia and America. However, production in Vietnam is showing signs of deterioration due to diseases, lack of quality control, poor production links and poor value-chain development. Duc said the situation called for the pepper industry to restructure the sector. Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nguyen Xuan Cuong, said that if the shortcomings were not corrected, they would affect sustainable pepper development. According to MARD data, by the end of 2017, the total pepper farming area exceeded the 2020 plan by more than 100,000 hectares, mainly concentrated in the Central Highlands. Duc said the danger was that although global pepper production had increased by 7 percent year-on-year in 2017, overall demand only increased by 2.4 percent. Considering current supply and demand, the pepper bubble would soon burst. Nguyen Nam Hai, Chairman of the Vietnam Pepper Association (VPA), said that as global consumption did not increase in tandem with supply, world pepper prices had… [Read full story]
Viet Nam’s pepper farmers are on pins and needles as pepper prices continue to decline. The industry, once known for its high profit margins, is in crisis due to unsustainable development, lack of strict control over production and unforeseeable speculation. According to Le Van Duc, deputy director general of the Crop Production Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), as world market demand for pepper began to rise at the beginning of the decade, pepper production in Viet Nam started growing at an alarming rate. He now predicts that "the bubble is about to burst". The total…... [read more]
The pepper industry plans to reduce the area under the spice and focus instead on improving quality to ensure long-term growth, a seminar heard in HCM City on Thursday. Le Van Duc, deputy head of the Crop Production Department, said the pepper cultivation area had increased sharply since 2010 to 152,668ha last year, exceeding the Government’s zoning plans by more than 100,000ha. High pepper prices in recent years have incentivised farmers into expanding -- even to unsuitable lands and without any planning -- while the overuse of fertilisers has caused plants to degenerate quickly and be more vulnerable to disease,…... [read more]
VietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam was well poised as the world's largest pepper exporter to take advantage of steadily rising demand for the spice in the coming years, experts said. World demand for pepper was expected to rise by about 5 per cent per year in the coming years, they said. However, they also cautioned that poor cultivation practices including overexploitation could undermine growth in the long run. Addressing the conference held by the Viet Nam Pepper Association to review its 2008-10 performance and set tasks for 2011-14, chairman Do Ha Nam said the country's total pepper output this year would…... [read more]
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Vietnamese pepper exports jumped 35.5% in volume and 40.4% in value in April over the same period last year. MARD reports that in April the country exported 23,000 tonnes of peppers fetching US$157 million, bringing cumulative exports for the first four months of the year to 72,000 tonnes grossing US$493 in total revenue for the period. With this in mind, the pepper export target of US$1 billion is well within reach this year, said MARD report Actively mastering the market The Vietnam Pepper Association (VPA) reports that the new plateau…... [read more]
A farmer harvests pepper on her farm in Phu Quoc District, Kien Giang Province. The pepper industry needs a plan to gain sustainable development this year. — VNA/VNS Photo Huy Hung HA NOI — The pepper industry should see sustainable development for this year after achieving record high export value for 2009 in the industry's history. Do Ha Nam, chairman of the Viet Nam Pepper Association, said Viet Nam exported a record volume of 135,000 tonnes of pepper in total for last year, earning US$360 million. The figure represented a 51 per cent increase in volume and a 18 per…... [read more]
