KOCHI: India is the largest producer of spices in the world. But, the country also imports spices in large numbers. In fact, of late, imports have been rising.
Although the quantity of spices reaching Indian shores has not really shot up, the value doubled in just four years. In 2011-12, India imported 1.11 lakh tonnes of spices worth Rs 2,094 crore. It rose to 1.66 lakh tonnes worth Rs 4,466 crore in 2015-16.
The major consuming countries of Indian spices are the US and Europe. India imports mostly from South Asia and Africa.
“India consumes 86 per cent of its total production and the rest is exported in original or value-added forms. So, the companies in India which are focused on value-added spice products have to resort to imports. Companies in search of quality spices at cheaper rates have to look overseas for options.
Also, when the same spice is needed in large quantities, it is almost impossible to source the total requirement from within the country,” says P J Kunjachan, chairman and managing director, Arjuna Natural Extracts.
Ginger, coriander and clove are the largest imported varieties in terms of quantity, whereas
pepper and clove rule the import basket in value.
All India Spices Exporters Forum Chairman Gulshan John said: “In the recent past, many spice varieties were available cheap overseas. This is one of the reasons for increased imports. Value-addition is done to most of the imported spices before they are exported.”
In 2015-16, a total of 8,43,255 tonnes of spices and spice products valued Rs 16,238.23 crore have been exported from the country against 8,93,920 tonnes valued at Rs 14,899.68 crore in 2014-15.