Cardamom growers expect price spurt in off-season sale

With the harvesting season coming to its fag end, cardamom growers are now pinning their hopes on off-season price rise.

This season, which was marked by weak prices, ends by the close of this month. During the season, the average price of the commodity dropped to Rs 550 a kg from around Rs 1,100 a year ago. The maximum price reached on Tuesday is Rs 765 a kg, compared with Rs 1,500 in October last year.

The increase in production and acearage were the main reasons for the drop in prices. Aided by favourale climatic conditions, the supply to the various auction centres remained high through the season, keeping the prices firmly grounded.

According to growers’ provisional estimates, total production this year was around 15,000 tonnes, around 2000 tonnes higher than last year.

According to farmers, stocking cardamom for off-season sale was not as high as it used to be in the past. A major chunk of production, especially by small and medium farmers, has already been sold out, and only big growers have good stocks for off-season sale.

Heavy stocking in the 2010 season was also a reason for regular supply this season, leading to low prices.

Another cause of worry for farmers this season was high wage payouts. The average daily wages to be paid to workers rose to Rs 300 from Rs 250. In some cardamom-growing areas, the wages have been raised to as high as Rs 350. Cardamom plantations have to employ workers on a daily basis because the crop needs more attention than other spices like pepper and nutmeg.