According to data from the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat), Vietnam continued to be the largest pepper supplier to the European Union (EU) in the first 4 months of the year with a volume of 11,359 tons, an increase of 25.1% compared to the same period last year and accounted for 61.5% of the region's total imports of this product.

Pepper imports in the EU are showing signs of recovery in the first months of 2024 after a decline last year.

Eurostat data shows that the EU imported 18,474 tons of pepper from foreign markets in the first 4 months of the year, worth EUR 83.7 million, an increase of 22.9% in volume and an increase of 27% in value over the same period in 2023.

In April alone, the volume of pepper imported into the EU reached its highest level since the beginning of 2023, with 5,440 tons, an increase of 22.7% over the previous month and an increase of nearly 40% over the same period. This is also the fourth consecutive month that EU pepper imports increased compared to the same period last year.

Regarding the supply market, the EU imported a total of 11,359 tons of pepper from Vietnam in the first 4 months of the year with a value of more than EUR 48.5 million, an increase of 25.1% in volume and an increase of 32.1% in value compared to the same period last year. With this result, Vietnam continues to be a pepper supplier to the EU with a market share of 61.5% of the region's total import volume of this product.

EU pepper imports from other markets also increased sharply over the same period last year such as: Brazil reached 3,443 tons, an increase of 25.3%; Indonesia reached 1,384 tons, an increase of 32.2%; India reached 952 tons, an increase of 9.9%.

The EU's average imported pepper price from Vietnam reached EUR 4,273/ton, from Brazil of EUR 3,665/ton, Indonesia EUR 5,509/ton, and India alone reached USD 6,646/ton.

In addition to competitive prices, Vietnam's pepper export businesses have an advantage over other exporting countries such as India, Malaysia, Indonesia, etc. thanks to the EVFTA Agreement, which helps reduce import taxes on ground or crushed pepper to the EU reduced from 4% to 0%.

In the first 4 months of the year, the top pepper importing countries in the EU included Germany with 5,829 tons, accounting for 31.6% of the market share; Netherlands 4,588 tons, accounting for 24.8%; France 2,827 tons, accounting for 15.3%, etc. The three countries mentioned above account for 71.7% of the EU's total pepper imports from the world.

Besides domestic consumption, importers also re-export a significant portion of pepper to other countries in the region.

Kylie Nguyen