Spice exporters look to tap new markets in Russia, Africa, Southeast Asia

Spices exports have been hit hard due to punitive US tariffs

Spices exporters from India are looking for newer destinations like Russia and Africa to ward off US-like shocks, despite a relaxation in tariffs by the United States (US).

 

“We feel it is necessary for India to broaden and explore other markets like Russia, Africa and Southeast Asia. This is to avoid being over dependent on one or two markets — US and China   — which is the situation now,” Ram Kumar Menon, chairman, World Spices Organisation (WSO) told Business Standard.

 

The US alone accounts for 15-16 per cent of the total spices exports from India. 

 

India exports both whole spices and value-added forms (like oleoresins and ground spices) to US and China.

 

Spices is among the few segments within overall agriculture and allied activities exports that has shown a dip in value terms both in October and during the April-October period.

 

Data from the Ministry of Commerce shows, in October, India exported spices worth around $321.07 million, 15.81 per cent lower than the same period last year.

 

And, between April and October 2025, India exported spices worth around $2467.97 million. It was around 0.10 per cent lower than the corresponding period last financial year.

 

WSO is a not-for-profit organisation set up with the primary objective of facilitating the spices industry in dealing with issues of food safety and sustainability through a collaborative approach. WSO recently held its fourth national conference in Guntur in Andhra Pradesh.

 

Spices is the latest commodity for which Russia has become a favoured trading partner after fertilisers, edible oil, defence and energy.

 

“Russia used to be a big market for Indian spices during the Soviet Era due rupee trade. We used to export something between 15,000 and 18,000 tonnes of pepper alone to that area, including to countries like Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. That route we are trying to revive,” Menon added.

 

He said that Southeast Asia is also a large market for spices and seasonings but India’s share in the global seasoning segment is still very low — around just $0.6 billion of the $14.2 billion.

 

Menon added that efforts are being made to urge the Spices Board to step up export promotion efforts in these hitherto untapped regions.

 

According to trade sources, India’s spices exports showed robust growth in the last 10 years. It was pegged at an all-time high of around ₹40,000 crore in FY25 (around $4.7 billion).

 

Encouraged by this, the country was targeting to export around $5 billion worth of spices in FY26. But the slowdown in US markets had come as a barrier.

 

The country produces around 11.8 million tonnes of spices annually, and this is growing steadily at around 3-4 per cent per annum. Of this, nearly 1.8 million tonnes of spices are exported.

 

Exports have grown slightly faster at around 4-6 per cent in the last 10 years.

 

Cardamom, pepper, chili, turmeric, jeera, and even garlic are major spices that are domestically produced and exported from India.

 

The domestic market is far larger; estimated between ₹1 trillion and ₹1.5 trillion, depending on the estimation method.

 

On the recent tariff relaxation by the US and its impact on spices exports, Menon said items like spice oils and oleoresins have not received the benefit of the relaxation.

 

“India exported $185 million of oils and oleoresins annually in FY25 while the total value of spices exports to the US was around $711 million. This means oils and oleoresin constitute a significant 26 per cent of exports to the US,” Menon added.