Pepper exports to China expected to surge in 2025
Pepper exports to China expected to surge in 2025
Cambodian pepper exports to China are set to experience a significant surge in 2025 as numerous exporting firms are ramping up their efforts to penetrate the Chinese market.
The protocol agreement on exporting pepper to China has boosted Cambodia’s pepper industry and provided a significant market for pepper farmers, said Mak Ny, President of Pepper and Spices Federation (CPSF).
Cambodia has recently exported some pepper to the Chinese market for the first time in 2024, and a number of firms are working to make more exports of the commodity to China, Ny said.
Speaking to Khmer Times, Ny said, “Pepper exports are expected to increase further in 2025, as Chinese and Cambodian exporting companies are currently working together to boost pepper exports to the Chinese market.”
The CPSF is optimistic that Cambodia’s pepper exports will continue to grow in the coming years, as pepper production in other countries sees a decline, he said.
Cambodia’s pepper market from 2024 to 2030 will continue to improve, meaning the price of pepper will be maintained at more than KHR 24,000 (approximately $6) per kilogram because the supply of pepper has not increased significantly while demand has increased every year,” he said.
Figures from the Ministry of Commerce showed that in the first 11 months of 2024, pepper exports to the international market reached more than $34 million, an increase of nearly 150 percent compared to the same period last year, which was only $13 million.
The factor that has caused Cambodia’s pepper exports to grow so rapidly is that demand for pepper in importing countries has increased, while pepper production in major exporting countries has decreased, causing global pepper stocks to decline, according to the CPSF.
The decline in pepper supply on the international market has pushed the price of Cambodian pepper this year to more than 25,000 riels per kilogram, double the price last year, Ny said.
Currently, pepper is grown on nearly 7,000 hectares with an average yield of over 18,000 tonnes, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries report.
Vietnam is the biggest market for the country’s pepper.
Besides, Cambodia also exports Geographical Indication (GI) pepper from Kampot province mostly to the European Union countries.
