Pepper• Prehistoric remains in Peru show that peppers existed then, and they were

cultivated in Central and South America in very early times. Columbus brought

them to Europe in 1493, and they were quickly adopted and cultivated.

Producer country

• Pepper is cultivated today in many countries. Brazil, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka (who are members of the International Pepper Community or IPC) and Vietnam, China, Ecuador, Madagascar, Thailand and Cambodia produce quantities of pepper significant in world trade. Other countries where pepper is grown on a small scale are Mexico, Brunei, Fiji, Samoa, Micronesia, Guatemala, Honduras, St. Lucia, Tanzania, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Benin, Kenya, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Uganda

Area and Productivity

Production • The 2014 global production is estimated at 409,000 tons, which is expected to

increase to approximate 454,000 tons for 2015.• India shrugged off a 6 year decline in production bottoming during 2014 at 45,000

tons. For 2015 India’s crop is significantly better at 85,000 ton. Main reason for this is favourable weather conditions rather than expansion of area under cultivation.

Price and trading• Black pepper prices peaked during June 2015 at an all-time high of $10,900 per

ton for ASTA quality. This is 7 times higher when compared to the lowest monthly average recorded in July 2005 at $1,560 per ton.