Chu Se District pepper output falls

VNBusinessNews.com - Pepper output in Gia Lai Province’s Chu Se District, the largest pepper growing area in Vietnam, will decrease by 35% to 11,000-12,000 tons against last year, said Hoang Phuoc Binh, general secretary of the Chu Se Pepper Association.

Pepper fields in the district have suffered from drought, floods and storms since last April, causing a loss of around 5,000 tons this year, Binh said. Pepper prices in the Central Highlands have increased by VND10,000 to VND40,000 per kilogram year-on-year given the shortage.

Other pepper growing areas such as Phu Quoc Island off Kien Giang Province, Dong Nai, Daklak and Ba Ria-Vung Tau have also suffered poor pepper crops due to unfavorable weather conditions. The nation’s pepper output is expected at around 100,000 tons, or 83% of last year’s figure, he added.

As the leading pepper exporter in the world, Vietnam exported 135,000 tons of pepper in 2009 and reached US$360 million in export value, increasing by 51% and 18% against last year respectively.
Source:http://www.vnbusinessnews.com/2010/02/chu-se-district-pepper-output-falls.html