Domestic pepper price recently slump to a six-year low due to weak demand.

Pepper price is currently at some VND80,000-84,000 (US$3.5-3.7) per kg, two-and-a-half times lower than the peak price in 2012.

The sale of pepper was struggling as market demand was low, while the expansion in plantation areas and yields was boosting supply.

In Gia Lai Province, pepper price was at VND81,000 per kg on Wednesday, VND4,000-5,000 per kg lower than the previous day. In Dak Nong and Dak Lac, pepper was sold at VND82,000-83,000 per kg.

In Dong Nai, pepper price saw a whopping decrease from VND87,000-89,000 per kg on Tuesday to VND80,000-81,000 on Wednesday.

Nguyen Lam Su, a farmer in Dak Nong Province’s Dak R’lap District, said farmers were very worried about the unusual slumps in pepper price in recent days, which was eroding their profits.

According to Nguyen Ngoc Luan, head of Lam San Cooperative, Dong Nai Province, the price of pepper was currently close to the production costs of many farmers. “If the downward trend continues, farmers may face losses,” he said.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said the significant decrease in pepper price was caused by the excess supply in comparison with demand in the global market.

In the first four months of this year, Viet Nam exported 75,000 tonnes of pepper, worth $456 in value, representing a rise of 9 per cent in volume but a decrease of 18 per cent in value over the same period last year.

Average export pepper price was $6,328 per tonne in the first quarter of this year, down 24.5 per cent over the same period last year.

The Viet Nam Pepper Association urged farmers to halt expansion of new plantations while focusing on taking care of pepper towards enhancing quality and limiting the use of pesticides. — VNS