Representative image of dry red chilli.
Credit: iStock Photo
Hubballi: With the cultivation area and estimated production of dry red chillies coming down drastically this time, this pungent spice has seen a sharp rise in price recording a maximum of over Rs 78,000 per quintal of top-quality chilli this season so far.
Since December, Hubballi APMC, a prominent dry chilli market only after Byadagi, has received 55,436 quintals of dry chillies (mainly Byadagi Kaddi variety), with prices ranging from Rs 800 to Rs 78,211 per quintal. In the same period last time, the arrival was 94,720 quintals, and the price was between Rs 1,000 and Rs 46,111.
As per the data available with the Karnataka State Spices Development Board (KSSDB), dry chilli cultivation area has come down to around 79,152 hectares of land in the state, with the estimated production is 1.58 lakh metric tonnes, both being the least last five years. The minimum cultivation area from 2021-22 to 2024-25 was not less than 1.20 lakh hectares, and production was not below 1.70 lakh MT.
Ballari, Raichur, Gadag, Dharwad, and Bagalkot are among leading dry chilli producing districts in Karnataka, which is in the top five position at the national-level. The season of 2023-24 had more than three lakh tonnes of production, with cultivation area being above two lakh hectares of land in the state.
"As the production was more in 2023-24, dry red chillies grown that season were sold in 2024-25 also. Due to less price in the last season, many farmers showed interest in other crops, resulting in less area of dry chilli cultivation and less production. Such fluctuations are not new, and the price is good this time," said KSSDB Managing Director B R Girish.
Byadagi chilli is grown on less than 10 per cent of total dry chilli growing area in the state this time, while seeds of new varieties developed by the horticulture research station at Devihosur in Haveri district aimed at protecting the original quality of Byadagi chilli are being distributed to farmers, he told reporters in Hubballi on Tuesday.
Guidance and other facilities are also being offered to farmers to grow this crop, as 30 per cent of total spices exports is of dry chilli and its products, he said.
Efforts to set up a government warehouse for dry chilli, especially in Byadagi, is not yet materialised. Efforts are also being made to establish a quality testing laboratory in Hubballi. A spice park on a PPP model at a cost of Rs 35 crore will come up in Mudigere taluk of Chikkamagaluru district, Girish added.
'Dry Chilli Mela' from February 6 to 8
To facilitate direct sale of dry red chilli from growers to customers, the 14th edition of Dry Red Chilli Mela is organised at Moorusaviramutt high school ground in Hubballi from February 6 to 8.
A total of 100 stalls will be put up for farmers and farmers' groups, and those selling Byadagi chilli being grown in this region (undivided Dharwad district) are expected to be the majority among them.
The event is organised by Karnataka State Spices Development Board (KSSDB), Horticulture Department, Karnatak Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), and farmer producer organisations (FPOs).
"The sales of dry chillies was 203 quintals (Rs 71 lakh) in 2025, 305 quintals (Rs 1.37 crore) in 2024, and 246 quintals (Rs 1.10 crore) in 2023," recalled KSSDB Managing Director B R Girish.
Dry chilli cultivation in state
Year Area (ha) Production (MT)
2021-22 1.50 L 2.13 L
2022-23 1.27 L 1.71 L
2023-24 2.08 L 3.20 L
2024-25 1.24 L 2.19 L
2025-26 79,152 1.58L
(Source: KSSDB)