Centre imposes Rs 500/kg minimum import price on pepper

The Centre on Wednesday imposed minimum import price (MIP) for pepper to protect the domestic growers from falling prices.

"The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has approved the proposal of the Spices Board for fixing the CIF (cost, insurance and freight) value of Rs 500 per kg as minimum import price for pepper to protect the interests of pepper growers," the government stated.

Fixing of minimum import price will help in improving the domestic price, particularly when the harvesting season of pepper is fast approaching.

In recent times, the decline in domestic pepper price due to the import of cheaper pepper from other origins has been a major concern among pepper growers.

Pepper prices have gone down by nearly 35% in one year and have resulted in a lot of hardship for pepper growers, said the statement from the Ministry of Commerce (MoC).

Earlier, farmers' associations had demanded stringent measures, including MIP, to prevent cheaper imports.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, too, submitted a memorandum to Union Minister of Commerce Suresh Prabhu stating that farmers in Karnataka were suffering due to flooding of cheap quality products from Vietnam and Sri Lanka.

Prabhu had assured that he will take action. Pepper is one of the major cash crops grown in coastal and western parts of Karnataka.