Globally exported black pepper rose in value by an overall average 12.8% since 2018 when export sales for black pepper totaled $1.84 billion.
Year over year, export revenues for the spice declined via a -5.5% reduction compared to $2.2 billion for 2021.
Black pepper is the world’s most traded spice in terms of quantity. The spice is typically added as a food seasoning paired with salt on dining tables either in shakers or mill containers.
Key Geographic Insights about Black Pepper Exports & Imports
By value, the 5 biggest exporters of black pepper are Vietnam, Brazil, Indonesia, India and Sri Lanka. Added together, that leading cohort of suppliers sold nearly three-quarters (74%) of all black pepper exported during 2022.
Shifting our focus to imports, the 5 leading importers of black pepper in 2022 are buyers in the United States of America, India, Germany, Vietnam and Japan. Collectively, that quintet of top import countries bought almost half (48.2%) of globally imported black pepper as measured by dollar value.
The above percentages suggest the total 125-plus exporters of black pepper (74% for the corresponding top 5 exporters) is a more concentrated cohort compared to 200 buying countries, islands and territories. In other words, the top 5 importers at 48.2% accounted for a smaller portion of its world total.
Applying a continental perspective, exporters in Asia supplied the highest dollar worth of exported black pepper during 2022 with shipments valued at $1.4 billion or 65.6% of the global total. In second place were shippers in in Latin America (15.4%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, trailed by those in Europe (13.8%). Smaller percentages came from providers in North America (3.2%), Africa (1.9%), and Oceania (0.1%) led by Australia and New Zealand.
As for global imports of black pepper by continent, 35.7% of black pepper purchased on international markets was delivered to customers in Asia, ahead of importers in Europe (29.1%). Lesser percentages went to buyers in North America (25.7%), Africa (5.8%), Latin America (2.2%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, and Oceania (1.4%) led by Australia and New Zealand.
For research purposes, the 6-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 090411 for black pepper that is neither crushed nor ground, and 090412 for crushed or ground black pepper.
Drilling down on those categories, 73.6% of world black pepper exports by value were for raw black pepper. The remaining 26.4% was collected for shipments of crushed or ground black pepper.
Top Black Pepper Exports by Country
Below are the top 20 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of black pepper during 2022, regardless of whether the shipped black pepper was crushed, ground or neither.
- Vietnam: US$903.6 million (43.6% of total black pepper exports)
- Brazil: $309.3 million (14.9%)
- Indonesia: $148.1 million (7.1%)
- India: $96.8 million (4.7%)
- Sri Lanka: $75.9 million (3.7%)
- Germany: $75.9 million (3.7%)
- Netherlands: $60.1 million (2.9%)
- United States: $48.1 million (2.3%)
- Malaysia: $41.3 million (2%)
- France: $31.4 million (1.5%)
- Cambodia: $22.3 million (1.1%)
- Austria: $21.2 million (1%)
- China: $20.6 million (1%)
- United Arab Emirates: $18.6 million (0.9%)
- Spain: $16.6 million (0.8%)
- Poland: $12.9 million (0.6%)
- South Africa: $12.3 million (0.6%)
- Mexico: $11.3 million (0.5%)
- Belgium: $10.7 million (0.5%)
- Italy: $9.3 million (0.5%)
By value, the listed 20 countries shipped 93.9% of globally exported black pepper in 2022.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing black pepper exporters since 2021 were: Netherlands (up 37.1%), United States of America (up 17.1%), Mexico (up 13.6%) and Poland (up 13.5%).
Those countries that posted declines in their exported black pepper sales were led by: United Arab Emirates (down -77.5% from 2021), Sri Lanka (down -37.9%), South Africa (down -24.2%), Cambodia (down -16.1%) and France (down -14.6%).
Top Black Pepper Imports by Country
The overall cost for imported black pepper totaled $2.1 billion in spending for 2022, posting a 48.2% increase over the 5-year period starting from $1.7 billion in 2018 slowing to a 3.8% upturn since 2021.
Below are the 20 best buying markets as measured by the highest dollar value worth of black pepper imported during 2022, for any black pepper regardless of whether crushed, ground or unprocessed.
- United States: US$466.9 million (22.4% of total black pepper imports)
- India: $203.2 million (9.7%)
- Germany: $138.6 million (6.6%)
- Vietnam: $120 million (5.8%)
- Japan: $77 million (3.7%)
- United Kingdom: $69.5 million (3.3%)
- France: $65.8 million (3.2%)
- Netherlands: $63.2 million (3%)
- Canada: $54 million (2.6%)
- Egypt: $46.3 million (2.2%)
- United Arab Emirates: $45.1 million (2.2%)
- China: $42.3 million (2%)
- Poland: $37.8 million (1.8%)
- South Korea: $35.4 million (1.7%)
- Thailand: $34.9 million (1.7%)
- Pakistan: $28.92 million (1.4%)
- Philippines: $27.61 million (1.3%)
- Morocco: $27.5 million (1.3%)
- Italy: $25.4 million (1.2%)
- Australia: $23.6 million (1.1%)
By value, the listed 20 countries bought 78.3% of globally imported black pepper in 2022.
Among the top importers, the fastest-growing buyers of imported black pepper were: Morocco (up 70% from 2021), Vietnam (up 54.1%), Japan (up 47.5%) and the United States of America (up 22.9%).
Five major buying countries posted declines in their purchases of imported black pepper were led by: United Arab Emirates (down -53.3% from 2021), Pakistan (down -39.4%), mainland China (down -22%), France (down -0.9%) and Germany (down -0.3%).
Imported Raw Black Pepper: Lowest and Highest Unit Prices
We calculated the average unit price paid by importers of non-crushed and unground black pepper to be $4,240 per ton in 2022. That dollar amount reflects a 1.6% advance from the average tonnage rate of $4,175 during 2021.
The average tonnage charge paid by the number one importer of non-crushed and unground black pepper, the United States of America, was much higher at $5,143.
Ranked in ascending order, listed below are the countries paying the lowest average unit prices for imported raw black pepper in 2022.
- Mauritania: US$132 per ton (down -15.4% from 2021)
- Niger: $140 per ton (up 13.8%)
- Lesotho: $169 per ton (down -24.6%)
- Benin: $273 per ton (up 53.4%)
- Liberia: $333 per ton (down -83.4%)
- Ivory Coast: $414 per ton (down -36.1%)
- Tanzania $421 per ton (up 117%)
- Togo: $475 per ton (down -2.1%)
- Uganda: $500 per ton (down -60%)
- Burkina Faso: $533 per ton (up 78.9%)
- Democratic Republic Congo: $720 per ton (up 64.4%)
- Eswatini: $735 per ton (down -71.7%)
- Kyrgyzstan: $781 per ton (up 17.6%)
- Uzbekistan: $835 per ton (down -23.7%)
- Ethiopia: $1,012 per ton (up 30.9%)
Posting the greatest reductions in average unit price paid per ton for non-crushed and unground black pepper from 2021 to 2022 were low-cost importers Liberia (down -83.4%), Eswatini (down -71.1%), Uganda (down -60%), Ivory Coast (down -36.1%), Lesotho (down -24.6%) and Uzbekistan (down -23.7%).
The following countries paid the highest average unit prices for imported unprocessed black pepper.
- French Polynesia: US$22,250 per ton (up 350.3% from 2021)
- Greenland: $20,000 per ton (up 81.8%)
- Montenegro: $17,200 per ton (up 11%)
- Faroe Islands: $17,000 per ton (down -10.5%)
- Iceland: $16,958 per ton (down -8.2%)
- Macao: $15,778 per ton (up 52.7%)
- Malawi: $15,000 per ton (up 36.4%)
- Luxembourg: $14,654 per ton (down -7.6%)
- Papua New Guinea: $13,000 per ton (up 342.5%)
- Cuba: $12,500 per ton (up 33%)
- Cambodia: $12,000 per ton (up 140%)
- Kenya: $11,840 per ton (up 7.6%)
- Ireland: $11,597 per ton (up 28.2%)
- Denmark: $11,263 per ton (up 0.9%)
- Slovenia: $11,040 per ton (up 9.3%)
The greatest accelerations in terms of higher average unit prices paid in 2022 compared to 2021 were experienced by importers in French Polynesia (up 350.3%), Papua New Guinea (up 342.5%), Cambodia (up 140%), Greenland (up 81.8%) and Macao (up 52.7%).
Imported Crushed or Ground Black Pepper: Lowest and Highest Unit Prices
In 2022, the world’s average unit price for imports of crushed and ground black pepper was US$5,589 per ton. With labor and related expenses added in, the average metric for processed black pepper exceeds the $4,240 per ton for raw black pepper.
The percentage increase for worldwide imports of processed black pepper increased by an average 23.5% compared to $4,526 per ton during 2021.
The average tonnage charge at $5,698 for the number one importer of crushed and ground black pepper, America, was greater than the global benchmark.
Ranked in ascending order, listed below are the countries paying the lowest average unit prices for imported crushed and ground black pepper in 2022.
- Cameroon: US$200 per ton (down -96.2% from 2021)
- Burundi: $250 per ton (no change)
- Mauritania: $255 per ton (up 4.1%)
- Sudan: $360 per ton (down -93.6%)
- Tanzania: $429 per ton (up 156.9%)
- Togo: $458 per ton (down -12.8%)
- Lesotho: $542 per ton (down -18.7%)
- Democratic Republic Congo: $600 per ton (down -3.5%)
- Laos: $809 per ton (down -51.5%)
- Timor-Leste: $853 per ton (down -14.7%)
- Burkina Faso: $1,286 per ton (up 39.3%)
- Namibia: $1,354 per ton (down -42%)
- Benin: $1,429 per ton (down -30.9%)
- Armenia: $1,484 per ton (down -34.6%)
- Algeria: $1,702 per ton (up 11.5%)
The greatest decliners in average unit price paid per ton for crushed and ground black pepper were recorded by buyers in Cameroon (down -96.2% from 2021), Sudan (down -93.6%), Laos (down -51.5%), Namibia (down -42%) and Armenia (down -34.6%).
The following countries paid the highest average unit prices for imported crushed or ground black pepper.
- Equatorial Guinea: US$19,000 per ton (2021 data unavailable)
- French Polynesia: $17,722 per ton (down -5.8% from 2021)
- Gabon: $17,000 per ton (up 1400.4%)
- Curaçao: $17,000 per ton (up 325%)
- Bermuda: $15,692 per ton (up 14.5%)
- Greenland: $14,000 per ton (down -24.3%)
- Nicaragua: $13,883 per ton (up 26.1%)
- Luxembourg: $13,483 per ton (down -7.5%)
- Morocco: $13,182 per ton (up 19.8%)
- Uruguay: $13,041 per ton (up 64.5%)
- New Caledonia: $12,450 per ton (up 66%)
- Faroe Islands: $12,400 per ton (down -39.5%)
- Cayman Islands: $12,194 per ton (up 137.6%)
- Montenegro: $12,179 per ton (up 8.4%)
- Haiti: $11,857 per ton (up 27.9%)
The most intense percentage gains in terms of higher average unit prices were paid by importers of crushed or ground black pepper in Gabon (up 1,400% from 2021), Curaçao (up 325%), Cayman Islands (up 137.6%), New Caledonia (up 66%) and Uruguay (up 64.5%).
See also Top Exported Spices by Sales, Weight and Unit Value, Top Salt Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices, Top Garlic Exports by Country, Top Cloves Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices, Top Nutmeg Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices and Top Vanilla Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices
Research Sources:
Alibaba, Black Pepper Showroom. Accessed on August 16, 2023
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on August 16, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 16, 2023
Wikipedia, Black Pepper. Accessed on August 16, 2023