Prices of imported pepper, particularly from Sri Lanka, have also increased due to currency fluctuations in the Lankan rupee amid increased buying interest.
According to traders, domestic pepper prices are holding at elevated levels at around ₹704 a kg for ungarbled varieties and ₹724 a kg for garbled varieties. About 50 tonnes of pepper arrived on Thursday, with the majority material sourced from Sri Lanka. Higher production in Sri Lanka has resulted in a higher volume of shipments arriving in India.
Adverse weather impact
Kishore Shamji, director of the Indian Pepper and Spice Trade Association (IPSTA), said adverse climatic conditions in several major growing regions, including Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Idukki, had severely affected production due to insufficient rainfall.Although India’s pepper production for the 2026 harvest season is estimated at 65,000–75,000 tonnes, reports suggest that actual production could be considerably lower due to the impact of the El Niño, he said.
Festival demand, beginning with Ganesh Chaturthi and extending through Navratri and Diwali, is picking up in several upcountry markets. The increase in consumption, coupled with changing food habits, is supporting demand for pepper.
To meet the rising demand, the industry is increasingly looking at imports, as declining domestic production is not sufficient to meet consumption requirements, Shamji said.
Vietnam, Brazil pepper
Sri Lanka has emerged as the preferred source for imports due to its bumper crop this year. Pepper prices there are currently around $6,900 a tonne, compared with about $7,800 a tonne in India. Pepper from Vietnam and Brazil could also make inroads into the Indian market if demand continues to rise. Vietnam prices are around $6,000 a tonne, while Brazilian pepper is quoted at about $5,800 a tonne, Shamji said.There are also reports of farmers in Idukki switching from pepper to cardamom cultivation in response to surging cardamom prices. The failure of cardamom production in Guatemala has pushed up the international prices of Indian cardamom, he added.
Published on September 10, 2026
