New Delhi (NVI): As more and more people rush to strengthen immunity amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for Indian spices has gone up with a whopping 34 per cent rise in their exports, according to an ASSOCHAM study.
“Spices exports from India went up (by 23 per cent) to USD 359 million in June, 2020 from USD 292 million in the same month last year, contrary to a decline of 12.41 per cent in the country’s overall merchandise export basket during this period,” ASSOCHAM said in a statement.
After the outbreak of the pandemic, demand for Indian spices has shown an increase, as a number of studies show how they can boost immunity to ward off potential virus threat.
“In domestic currency, thanks to forex advantage, spices exporters raked in even better realisations which rose (up 34 per cent) to Rs 2721 crore in June, 2020 from Rs 2030 crore in the comparative month a year ago,” as per the ASSOCHAM official data.
Among major spices shipped abroad are pepper, cardamom, ginger, turmeric, coriander, cumin, celery, fennel, fenugreek, nutmeg, spice oils and oleoresins, and mint products. Indian spices reach almost to the entire world while the main importers include the US, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, Australia, UAE, Iran, Singapore, China and Bangladesh, among others, ASSOCHAM said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also acknowledged the rising demand of Indian spices amid the pandemic.
“The Prime Minister noticed how demand for spices of which India is among the main producers, is increasing as more and more people rush to strengthen immunity. Thanks to the efforts of the Aayush Ministry and traditional knowledge about spices being a strong immunity builder, an increasing number of Indians are taking to higher consumption of spices. But the rising exports trend does show how the world is benefiting from these items,” said ASSOCHAM Secretary General Mr Deepak Sood.
The ASSOCHAM dipstick study also noticed how rising demand for spices in the domestic market even led to a sharp increase in their prices by almost 12 per cent in June, 2020 whereas the headline CPI inflation was half that level.
”While the Aayush Ministry has been making commendable efforts to promote India’s Traditional Knowledge, the Covid-19 pandemic is compelling us to go an extra mile to document evidence based benefits of our TKs , as per the WTO norms so that we are able to protect and promote our treasure,” Sood said.
